Fractures
by Jay05
Summary: The war is over. Severus is ready for a - somewhat - peaceful life. That is until he is brought a letter from Dumbledore. "Protect her. Please, don't let the darkness take her away." The last person he expected to be watching over was an anxious wreck Ravenclaw, who knew too much for somebody that hid herself from the world. RATED M FOR ADULT THEMES.
1. Chapter 1

**_Hi! Do let me know what you think, and if you're interested in any more._**

* * *

 ** _Chapter One: The Almighty One._**

Wendy stared at the book before her. She was buried in the back of the library, trying to uncover any sign of hope. She had read too many books in her lifetime, but she remembered every single one of them.

It was just before breakfast, so nobody was around. She used to spend this time in the presence of Hermione Granger, but the girl didn't know that Wendy existed, nor did she frequently stop by anymore.

 _People don't notice me._

Some would say that was a good trait to possess. However, Wendy would appreciate someone to say hello to her once in awhile. She knew she was living in a fantasy. _When I graduate, people won't even clap or know who I am when I go to collect my diploma._

It didn't matter though; she was too busy saving the world from any more psychotic wizards.

Wendy didn't consider herself to be much. She always wore her hair on top of her head in a messy bun, and her dirty blonde hair had always seemed unappealing to her. Her eyes were a pale green with grey encircling them. Her features appeared striking, however, her cheeks were hollow due to lack of food.

Her robes covered her malnourished body, scars, and the dark mark on the inside of her right forearm. Scars littered her arm, all of them self-inflicted. She lost her sanity when it started to burn, she used to attempt to carve it from her body. _I'm lucky that my father was always around to save me._

It was a miracle that she was even alive. _I shouldn't be, but according to my dear daddy, I'm the Almighty One...meaning I need to stick around to save the world._

She'd been studying her prophecy ever since she escaped from the Death Eaters. The Almighty One was a being that had been reborn throughout centuries; each person was unique and capable of the world's most complex and powerful spells.

Their animagus was a white tiger, as they symbolised an aspect of personality that has unquestioned power; meaning they were a force to be reckoned with.

The Almighty One was never spoken about in lessons; Wendy couldn't remember a time when anyone had ever mentioned it, apart from her father. She knew he wasn't lying because she had read all the books in his Domain; a maze hidden beneath Hogwarts, protected by wards and a bricked doorway.

It appeared that the Almighty One had been covered up throughout history, and been a closely guarded secret between certain families. Wendy was bothered about being who she was because it meant that attention could come to her. That's if anybody uncovered the truth.

She had interfered with critical events, and if people found out, she would face endless, unwanted questions. Especially from one particular Professor.

Her body was still in long-term recovery after saving Professor Snape's life. He doesn't know that, nor will he ever if she had anything to do with it.

She had used an ancient spell to bring him back to life, and the force from the spell had frazzled her magic capabilities. It had taken all the willpower in the world to not collapse next to him in the shack from exhaustion. Fortunately, she managed to apparate into the Forbidden Forest.

Only to be attacked by two Death Eaters.

Wendy was not unfamiliar with the cruel ways of Death Eaters since she had been locked up by them for six years when she was seven years old. She had occupied the dungeon below an abandoned building they had once used as a meeting place. On her thirteenth birthday, her long lost father had turned up to save her with Hagrid in tow.

It all seemed surreal. Nobody would ever believe that Albus Dumbledore was her father. It was a complicated story, but it was narrowed down to an unfortunate encounter with a time turner. Wendy had only been seven years old when she had picked up her father's time turner and sent herself forward in time somehow. It had promptly delivered her to the doorstep of the Death Eaters, where she had lived out six years of her life.

It was also the first time she had saved Professor Snape. Again, he didn't need to know that. He had never known she was down in the dungeon as she had been kept a secret from most of the other Death Eaters. She was left to be the plaything of Bellatrix, and a Death Eater called Rufus.

One of Rufus' torturing sessions had resulted in her willingly taking the Dark Mark. Even after enduring torture for a year, eight-year-old Wendy still had some of her mother's kindness hidden within her. At the time she hadn't the slightest idea who Severus Snape was, so when Rufus had said he would bring him down and torture him in front of her if she didn't take the mark, she had shoved her arm in his direction not wanting to see anyone else get hurt.

It confused her as she thought that only the Dark Lord himself could give somebody the Dark Mark, apparently she had been wrong.

The day after, Rufus told her that Severus was a Death Eater, yet she couldn't find it in her heart to regret her decision. _I hate seeing good people hurt_. When her father had rescued her from years of torture, she discovered who exactly Professor Snape was. She had assumed her father had used him to help find where she was, but Snape didn't have the faintest idea of who she was.

 _It doesn't matter anyway; he still scares me._ Wendy didn't know what it was, but she always ran away from him if he tried to talk to her. She had accidentally walked into him once in the corridor, and she had screamed, then ran away to her father's office. She was a top grade student so he rarely ever needed to talk to her about her work, or behaviour in lessons. _It's like that with every teacher, and I'm pretty sure they don't even know my name._

Wendy turned the page of the book before her and noticed her trembling hand. She guessed it was her body's reaction to a lack of food, sleep, and magic. Wendy was decent at potions but didn't know where to get the ingredients from as she wasn't confident enough to try to steal them from Professor Snape. So, she just had to hope that her body and magic heal naturally - even though it had already taken over a year to get to the point where she could perform basic spells.

If she went to the hospital about it, they would ask too many questions, and she sucked at lying which was why she kept to herself. Her father had tried to help her get better at lying but never succeeded. _I'm the Almighty One, and I couldn't lie to save my life. Go figure._

Another thing her father had struggled to help her with was her erratic bursts of anger. He had said that it was down to the build up of magic not being used. The littlest things would set her off, and she would go on a rampage, trashing everything in sight, or turning into a white tiger and mauling another animal in the Forbidden Forest.

 _I'm searching for a way to prevent my bursts of anger from happening._ Wendy spent every single day searching for more information on the Almighty One.

Dumbledore's Domain contained the answers to everything imaginable - hypothetically speaking. The hidden floor below the castle was a maze of bookshelves. It was very easy to become lost and not find your way out. Wendy still gets lost sometimes, and she lives down there. _I haven't slept in the Ravenclaw dormitory since the fourth year, and nobody has noticed_ \- excluding her father.

Unbeknownst to Potter and his friends, the Elder Wand lay in the centre of the Domain. Potter had wanted to return it to her father's grave, so when Potter died its power would cease to exist. However, Wendy couldn't allow that to happen. She had severed the connection between Harry and the Elder Wand, so she was now the true bearer of its power - she was the one in control when holding it in her hand.

There were walking wards that patrolled the aisles in case of an intruder. The wards were, of course, invisible, but she had thrown sheets over them so she could see them moving around. If anybody managed to discover the Domain, the wards would set off an ear piercing screech that only she, and the intruder, could hear.

Wendy didn't want anybody to find out about the Domain. It was her sanctuary filled with her father's memories and passions. A lot of things had happened down there. She had returned from insanity, and darkness thanks to her father. He had healed her in a way that was bearable. She still struggled on a daily basis to not lash out and act irrationally, but at least she was alive.

The years of torture had left her unfixable. Her mind and body were fractured and scarred from the Death Eaters and Voldemort's power. He hadn't been in human form at the time of her kidnapping, yet he had still influenced a lot of her torture. Rufus had only been hurting her because he claimed to hear Voldemort tell him to do so.

She hated what he had made her become. She didn't know how to cope with life anymore. Hagrid was reasonably helpful, letting her play with his pet unicorn, Osher, to help her keep calm.

She was proud to have not attacked anyone in any way since her father had passed. However, a butchering had been prevented by Hagrid after she discovered that Professor Snape had killed her father. That was a detail daddy had forgotten to share with me. Ten times she tried to kill him, and ten times she had been stopped by Hagrid.

There was so much going on in her life that you'd think people would notice the way she was, but no one ever did. Her face was always void of emotion. Her eyes never gave anything away, and walls heavily guarded her mind. She was friendless and alone. _My father had been my only friend._

A cough pulled her from her deep thoughts.

Wendy looked over at a Gryffindor student who was browsing the shelves, then turned away and gazed at her shaking hands. _I should eat something today._ She performed wandless magic to clean up the mess she had made and sent the book she was reading back down into the Domain.

Her arm stung from using magic, and she inhaled sharply, gritting her teeth.

The Domain was beneath the kitchen. There was a door which led to some stairs and at the bottom was a solid brick wall that only opened when a particular word was said. Wendy changed the name every week in case somebody tried to follow her down there.

Only one house-elf knew of its existence, and that was Betty. She knew whenever the secret word changed as Wendy needed someone as a backup. Hagrid didn't know that the Domain existed, he only knew of the torture, and the after effects it was causing her. She knew somebody needed to know she was down there, so Betty checked up on her frequently to see if all was OK.

Wendy took her wand from the table and put it in her right boot. She briskly walked out of the library and towards the Great Hall. It was bursting with life, everyone rejoicing their freedom from the Dark Lord. It seemed that everybody wanted to forget about those who had died along the way, and that didn't sit well with Wendy.

She headed over to her table and spotted an empty spot. She went to sit down, but somebody cut in front of her and took the seat without a word of apology. She saw another free place, but the same thing happened again. _I'm invisible to these people._

She felt like somebody was watching her from afar. She could feel a powerful aura surrounding her body; then a sharp pain came to her head.

 _Somebody is trying to get inside my mind._ Wendy glanced at the Gryffindor table, then around at the others. Nobody was paying any attention to her.

She shrugged it off and went to sit down, only to have someone else steal it away. She gritted her teeth, churning down on the bone.

Whoever was trying to get inside her head was being persistent, apparently not thinking she could sense them. Her father had taught her well, so she could pretty much sense the snooping from the best of the trade. The person was careful, tactful, trying not to be discovered.

 _Who the hell is trying to get into my memories?_

The heated aura pulled her eyes to the high table, and she locked gazes with Professor Snape.

He didn't look away.

She swallowed the lump in the back of her throat, then took off running from the Hall, forgetting to grab something to eat.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN/ Hi! Here's another chapter for you! Thank you to** **SB-Potterhead Budgie Lover for reviewing and to those who favourited and followed. Hope you enjoy, please don't hesitate to leave me your thoughts :)**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: The Letter.**

Severus watched Miss Nottingham flee the hall; or should he say, Miss Dumbledore. He had watched her appear in the room and get walked all over by her fellow pupils. This wasn't the first time Severus had seen the people around her ill-treat her. He had noticed people's lack of interest in Nottingham a long time ago.

 _She knew I was trying to look inside her head._ He was aware that she was a relatively smart witch, but he hadn't known she knew Occlumency; it added to the list of things he didn't know about the anxious Ravenclaw.

Yesterday, Minerva had delivered a letter to him which she had uncovered in Albus' old office. It had his name written on it in Dumbledore's swirly handwriting, so there was no doubt who it was from.

The contents of the letter had opened up a black hole in his life. For once, he wasn't the person who was hiding away from others, keeping secrets. Apparently, this was now Wendy Dumbledore's role.

The letter had said:

 _Dear Severus,_

 _If you're reading this, it means you survived the war. I offer my congratulations on what you have achieved. My gratitude is endless, and I'm thankful for everything you've done for me. But, I seem to need your help now more than ever._

 _I have a daughter._

 _You may know of her; if you don't it wouldn't surprise me, she likes to keep to herself. Her name is Wendy Nottingham, she will now be in her seventh year, and she's in Ravenclaw. She takes after her mother in a lot of ways, as she too was reserved and a Ravenclaw. Just you wait until you see her angry, she's very much like me._

 _Anyway, I'm long gone now, and I can't do anything to help her Severus. She needs support in all aspects of her life because she is special. She's the answer to everything, and I can't protect my little pumpkin anymore. Please, don't wear this as a burden because she may provide you with answers to a lot of unknown things in your life._

 _I need you to show her this letter, so she knows that I've asked you to enter her life; otherwise, you don't stand a chance in hell of getting near her. She has expressed before that she's afraid of you, but I don't blame her Severus, your stare can be quite intimidating, and she doesn't deal with that well._

 _I'm asking you to help because you're the only person I can trust with this. If others find out, then I need you to protect her from them. There are so many sick people out there that will take advantage of her, and she can be easy to trick at times. She gets that from her mother too._

 _Protect her. Please, don't let the darkness take her away._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Albus Dumbledore._

The jumpy Ravenclaw was, in fact, Albus' daughter. He still couldn't believe it. _She's nothing like him_. She didn't radiate power, and confidence, instead she projected fear and nervousness. One time she had run into him in the corridor, and he hadn't even opened his mouth to scare her away before she'd sprinted off screaming. It had brought a smile to his face.

In Potions, she sat at the back and always kept her eyes down. Usually, this would provoke Severus to pick on her for answers in class, but he knew that she'd know all the answers anyway, so he saved her the embarrassment of being called out. The times when he went over to check her cauldron, she would turn her back to him while he checked.

 _Miss Nottingham had a lot of...quirks so to speak_ , that he had picked up on. It was clear as day that she liked being alone, yet he saw the longing in her eyes for something. He had seen it more on her face after Dumbledore's death, and it all made sense to him now.

 _I killed her father_. However, he had never seen an incline of hate towards him. She didn't make eye contact with anyone; just before, when she had caught him looking into her mind, it was the first time she had ever looked at him properly.

Severus couldn't help carrying Albus' request as a burden because it brought up too much of the past for him. _He asked me to kill him only to, later on, ask me to protect his daughter. I have to protect someone that's in agony because of me._ He didn't care about other people's emotions, but he did feel sympathy for the girl.

"Are you well prepared for the Duelling lesson today?" Minerva said from next to him.

"Yes," He grunted in response.

A decision came to that students were to be more trained in one-to-one duelling. It appeared in other subjects, but many parents had requested that their child knew how to defend themselves well. So, every Monday he and Flitwick would teach the sixth and seventh years Duelling. It seemed unnecessary to him, but he did what he was told to do.

Maybe he could find out more about the Ravenclaw girl from Flitwick since he was the head of her house. _I'd bet Galleons on him not knowing who she was._

"Harry seems to be in high spirits," Minerva took a sip from her goblet. "It's nice to see him happy again."

Severus followed her gaze to Potter and his friends. They all, surprisingly, returned to Hogwarts after the year they spent away due to the war. The school had become overcrowded with people, and Severus couldn't wait for it to quieten down again.

"I was considering keeping Harry away from Duelling, but he seemed keen to have a go at it," She explained. "He could use it as practice for when he trains to be an Auror."

"Hm…" Severus looked away from the trio and stared down at his empty plate.

"What did it say, Severus?" She asked, and he gave her an annoyed look.

"Its contents is confidential," He grumbled. "I can take care of it."

"Can you?" He nodded firmly, not wanting the minimal conversation to continue. "Very well."

…

Wendy kept her head down as she followed the crowd of students into the potions classroom; all of them barged into her. She took her usual seat at the back of the room where nobody sat next to her. It was then that she remembered she had left her Advanced Potions book in the Domain.

She flicked her wrist under the table, and it appeared in her hand. A sharp pain tore up her arm causing her to flinch. _I wonder when the pain will stop?_ She had read into magic frazzling, and most of the time a person's magic would return to its normal state over time with the help of potions. She didn't have that luxury, so she was waiting for it to happen naturally.

Unfortunately, she was panicking about the upcoming Duelling lesson. _I can't even perform a jinx, how the heck am I going to duel somebody?_ She was busy thinking of a way to get out of it. _Nobody notices me anyway, maybe I should just not turn up._

The register might be a problem, yet, most of the time when teachers said her name out loud they didn't even wait for a reply. _That settles it; I'm not going to turn up._

Her stomach rumbled loudly.

Again, nobody paid any attention to her. She glanced at her yearning stomach, her mouth watering. _I'll have Betty prepare me something after this._ Her Duelling lesson was straight after Potions; both of them were with Professor Snape. Her eyes widened a little.

 _He doesn't notice me either...until today_. _What the heck was he doing trying to look inside my head?_ Her father had taught her Occlumency the moment he had rescued her from Rufus; she was trained to the highest level so nobody could get in. Not even Professor Snape.

The sound of a doorbell filtered through her mind and she glanced at the Potions door, but quickly looked away. _That was the wards letting me know that Betty has entered the Domain._ She had altered the wards to let her know of the ongoings inside when she wasn't around, because there were very dangerous things down there.

It contains books that when opened will unleash a beast. They're chained up and kept deep within the maze, but she had to be cautious in case, somehow, they broke free. The wards would let off an ear piercing screech if something dangerous was trying to escape. So far that had never happened.

"Were my instructions unclear to you, Miss Nottingham?" She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, then became aware that the people around her were moving to get equipment. She didn't move her gaze from the worktop.

"N-No, sorry s-sir," She cringed at her staggering voice and got to her feet. Snape took her book from the table, opened it to the correct page, then slammed it down on the table making her jump. "Thank you, s-sir."

He walked off without another word, and she glanced at the ingredients she needed to get.

Around twenty minutes later, Wendy had finished brewing the necessary potion whereas everybody else hadn't. She sat at the back scanning through her potions book. _I've read this book many times and brewed all the potions._

Her father used to provide her with all the money she needed for her advanced potions, and she had beamed with enjoyment when she was allowed to spend her weekend brewing unheard of potions. There were a lot of ancient potion books down in the Domain, and she knew that Professor Snape would love to read them.

A shadow loomed over her, and she clutched onto her robes. Snape began to observe the liquid inside her cauldron, and she kept her eyes on her hands. She saw that they were still trembling.

"I would like you to stay behind for a few minutes, Miss Nottingham," She hid her alarmed eyes from him, and nodded her head.

Wendy waited in anxiousness as the lesson came to an end. She cleaned up her worktop and bundled her book against her chest. _How the buggering hell am I supposed to miss Duelling now?_

A thorny silence fell. _Just keep your eyes down Wendy_ , she assured herself. She heard him head over to his desk and take a seat, so she got to her feet and walked up to the front of his desk. She could feel his eyes burning into her, which caused her to shift uncomfortably.

"Look at me," His husky voice was laced with authority. The kind that either made Wendy quiver in a corner or anger her to her boiling point.

Wendy bit her bottom lip, then slowly raised her eyes in his direction, focusing on the wall behind him. Her chest was extremely tight, furthering her discomfort.

"Look at me." His sharp tone meant there was no room for argument, so she finally looked into his dark eyes.

She hadn't had many chances to observe her Professor before, but she had to admit he was kind of handsome. She had noted his appeal back when she'd saved him, even if it had been for a short period. It was hard for her to put into words what she found attractive about him. Nevertheless, there was still something that ignited fondness towards him.

He was observing her, thankfully, not trying to prod into her mind anymore. _Why is he talking to me? Why can't he leave me alone like everybody else?_

"Do I frighten you?" It was a simple question, yet it made her flinch away as if he had hit her. It didn't go unnoticed by him. He seemed taken aback by her reaction for a second but soon got to his feet. "Get to your Duelling lesson."

She nodded her head, then ran out of the door.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Duelling.**

Wendy walked into the Great Hall and stood behind the crowd of seventh years. She could see those that were now famous from the war, coming together and talking amongst their group. It seemed that most people in her year had done something good during the war, so now they were praised for it on a daily basis.

She didn't feel jealous about it, _just underappreciated._

Professor Snape entered the hall and joined Flitwick on the duelling stage. He removed his robe and tossed it off to the side, and one of the students whistled. He narrowed his eyes at the crowd, then rolled up his sleeves.

She heard a few of the students say something about the Dark Mark on his arm, but it didn't seem to bother him. She absently touched hers through her robe. It was much uglier than Professor Snape's; hers was missing parts from when she had tried to slice it from her arm. The pain had been excruciating, and her father had concluded that the magic set upon her Dark Mark was much different than Snape's. His was a stinging/mild burning sensation anytime he was summoned to the Dark Lord, but hers had been like somebody was setting her whole body on fire. The only way she could stop it was by giving into the pull and try to hurt herself.

It sounded stupid now that she thought about it. She was sure that the Dark Lord didn't know of her existence, only Rufus and Bellatrix knew. So, whenever Rufus was up for some amusement, he would cause her mark to set her body alight until she caused herself physical harm.

 _I'm glad that it's over now._

Professor Flitwick started to talk to the crowd, explaining what they would be doing in the lesson. They were going to choose people to come up and throw spells at one another while trying to defend the incoming spells from their opponent. _It was simple enough...for those who could use their magic._

 _I'm fine...they never notice me._ Wendy kept her eyes on her worn-out boots. The tip of her wand was peaking out of the top, so she took it out to hold. She preferred the Elder Wand to her original one.

The reason behind her keeping the Elder Wand was due to her reading a small paragraph about it in some old text about the Almighty One. It hadn't said it was relevant to her in any way, but she knew that she needed to keep it as it might become relevant. It was resting on a cushion under a glass case in the centre of the book maze, guarded by an empty knight that was set to attack if anybody, but her, tried to touch it.

Professor Snape called out a student's name and Flitwick said another; she looked up to see them walk onto the stage. The two professors stood behind each student just in case anything went wrong. She had to admire Professor Snape from afar. He was rather masculine in his attire today.

Wendy knew all about his feelings for Lily Evans. She knew that it was none of her business, but she was rather good at putting things together; it was also because when she had healed him with ancient magic, his memories had filtered through her mind at the speed of light.

 _I get him...I understand the things he has done. Yet, I don't have the heart to forgive him for killing my father._ She had wanted him to die a slow and painful death after what he'd done. She didn't care that her dad had asked him to do it.

That had been her mindset before the war, but she had come to realise that he wasn't to blame. _Still, I do feel anger towards him._

She didn't know what it was like to be in love, and she believed that she never would. It wasn't as if people were queueing up to confess their undying love to her. Wendy would be OK though; she would keep marching through life on her own.

The pair duelling stopped, and Professor Snape began to explain and show examples of defence to them. She reached down to put her wand away when his deep voice made her pause.

"I wouldn't be putting that away if I were you, Miss Nottingham," Her face exploded with emotion.

Pure panic.

 _Crap. Buggering shitty crap._

"Get up here," A few people turned and she heard someone say _"who?"_. She clutched onto her wand for dear life, then slowly walked over to the steps. He was waiting at the top, never taking his eyes away. She did her best to avoid all eye contact with him, but she could feel his eyes all over her body, and it unsettled her.

 _I want him to stop._

"Potter, get up here," Flitwick said.

"No," She whispered and thought nobody heard.

"He'll go easy on you because you're weak," He said from behind. His tone had been low, so the people around them didn't hear.

The insult hurt. Normally, Wendy would have to bite her tongue to stop herself from lashing out at him, but right now, he was correct. _He's going to flipping kill me!_ She didn't know how her body would react if a powerful spell hit her. _What if it completely burns out my magic...what then!?_

Her mind was overwhelmed with what ifs, and she looked back at Professor Snape with pleading eyes. His face didn't change, still void of emotion. _I hate him!_

"Step towards your opponent," He didn't take his eyes off her. It was like he was waiting for her to break. _I feel like he can read me like an open book. What the heck does he know? Why is he showing an interest in me!?_

Wendy felt anger shoot through her veins. That was never a good sign. _I need to calm down. I need to stop panicking._ She did as she was told and took tentative steps towards Potter, and he did the same, but more confidently.

She stared at her wand then back at Potter who was at the ready.

"Begin," Snape's velvety voice filled her ears, and she felt her anger simmer down.

Wendy closed her eyes and let her wand hand hang loosely by her side.

 _"Everte Statum!"_

Her eyes flew back open just before the spell slammed into her chest, causing her to fly backwards. She landed in a heap of robes on the floor, just in front of Professor Snape's feet. Her body was alight for a second; then it was like somebody had blown out a candle. Her body was devoid of anything.

Her limbs felt heavy and brittle, and her lack of sleep poured down on her.

"I'm sorry," She heard Potter say from the other end of the stage. "I thought you would block it."

She met Professor Snape's angry gaze. He seemed to be seething with anger, so she forced herself to sit up, and pushed some of her fallen hair from her face. Her knees trembled as she stood up, and carefully manoeuvred herself off the stage; still feeling his eyes on her.

A couple of people murmured around her, yet most of them didn't seem to care about the incident. More people were called up to duel, and she stared at the cold floor. She didn't understand how she was still standing; her knees twitched underneath her weight. Her head was a pounding ache, and her eyes occasionally stayed shut for too long.

Her heavy eyelids opened, and she realised that everybody around her was gone, apart from the dark figure of Professor Snape who stood in front of her.

"I was under the impression that you knew how to defend yourself, Miss Nottingham," He said menacingly. _Why does he have to be so bitter?_

She managed to drag her eyes to his face. "S-Sorry, s-sir."

"The lesson finished five minutes ago," He smirked at her stupidity, and Wendy nodded her head.

"I apologise for m-my mistake, sir," She dragged her feet along the floor as she headed towards the door, unaware of Professor Snape's worried gaze.

…..

"Miss Dumbledore, you must eat," Wendy forced herself to stay standing, using the bookshelf for support.

She had managed to get herself into the Domain without collapsing in front of everyone. She was in the section where there was an alcove within the bookshelves. Along the far shelf was her desk; more books and parchments rested on it, her sofa lay against the right bookshelf, where she usually slept if she could get any.

Betty was pacing around in circles, and the ward that patrolled the aisle swerved around her. "Please, erm Miss Wendy, you must sit down and eat. You haven't eaten in days."

"I'm all right," She pushed herself off the shelf, and her knees cried out in pain.

"Your magic...it's damaged more," Wendy could sense her worry, so she tried to walk towards her desk to prove that she was OK.

As she walked the small distance to her desk, her head suddenly felt empty.

"Miss!" Betty screamed just as Wendy collapsed onto the cobblestone with a firm thud.

….

Severus took a seat behind his desk, staring at the door before him. He was in his private chambers, and something seemed off. He'd decided against eating dinner in the Great Hall, so he waited for one of the house-elves to bring him his food.

He'd been waiting for the past hour.

His eyes settled into a glare, not knowing what was taking so long. He ought to go down to the kitchens and give them a piece of his mind.

He caught sight of Dumbledore's letter on his desk. Severus had read over the parchment around a hundred times since he had received it; still trying to come to terms with what he had discovered. _For a girl that is Albus' daughter, she sure is weak._

Severus had only wanted to see what she was capable of, typically he would've left her alone to blend in with the background, but curiosity had gotten the better of him. Then, before he could blink, she had been hit by a spell and landed at his feet.

 _She didn't even try to defend herself. What an insolent child._

He wanted to know how it was possible that Miss Nottingham was Albus' daughter. He would have been too old to have conceived a child since she was of young age. Something wasn't adding up, and he knew the only way to get answers was to confront her about it. But, that in itself, was a difficult task since she couldn't even form a sentence correctly when talking to him.

Severus knew that he scared people, heck, he enjoyed it. However, seeing her flinch away from him as if he had hit her, wasn't a moment he was proud of - _It's like she thinks I'm going to attack her._

A popping sound cut through the silence of his chambers, and his eyes landed on a frantic house-elf.

"P-Professor...s-sir…"

"What is it!?" He snapped in annoyance. "Where the hell is my dinner?"

"H-Help, Mr S-Snape," He got to his feet and walked around his desk. "Miss Wendy won't w-wake up."

His back straightened at the mention of her name. "Where is she?"

"Follow me, sir."


	4. Chapter 4

AN/ Thank you to those who favourited and followed! Please review :) So, I know you're out there.

* * *

 **Chapter 4: Liar.**

They appeared before a brick wall. Severus frowned. "What the hell is this?" His patience was running thin with the tiny house-elf. "Where is Miss Nottingham?"

"Wine gums," She called out, and his annoyance shifted into tension at the sight of the moving bricks. Once the doorway was clear, he took in the sight before him.

It was a long corridor filled with books. He could see where it broke off in two ways, but the main lighting radiated further down the corridor ahead. He took a slow step into the Domain, carefully observing his surroundings. _What the hell is this place?_

It smelt heavily of dust and herbs; smells he's familiar with. He caught sight of some of the names of the books, "Potions For The Blind." He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, and his mouth rested into a thin line.

The house-elf was practically jumping up and down, and he watched her flee down the corridor. He reluctantly followed behind her, until she came to a stop by the brightly lit area of bookshelves.

A white sheet moved past the end of the corridor. He hid his surprise with a scowl.

"You stupid elf! What in Merlin's name is going on here-" Severus stepped into the alcove in the bookshelves and saw her lying on the floor. He inhaled sharply, taking everything in for a second, then he quickly moved to aid her on the floor.

"Mr. Snape, sir…is she sleeping?" He scoffed at the elf's stupid words.

Severus rolled Wendy onto her back. He didn't hide the panic in his eyes at the sight of her pale complexion. "How long has she been like this?"

He waved his wand over her body, trying to understand what was wrong with her. _Maybe she just fainted_ …still, he couldn't stop the worry that he may be at fault for her collapsing. _I shouldn't have called her up onto the stage._

"A couple of minutes, Mr. Snape," The house-elf moaned. "It's her magic-I shouldn't have said that!" She began to pace around in circles, holding her hands to her face.

"What about her magic!?" He seethed through gritted teeth, his eyes darkening.

"F-Frazzled, sir."

His eyes returned to Wendy's lifeless body. The only source of comfort he was getting from this was the slight movement of her chest. He bundled her into his arms and gently put her down on the sofa.

 _I've failed Albus already._

"How was her magic frazzled?" The house-elf stopped her pacing.

"D-Duelling, sir," _Liar._

Severus took in the sight of her tiny form. Her cheeks were extremely hollow, beyond the point of being natural. Things were adding up in his mind, and he realised she was suffering badly from magic frazzling - also a lack of food - but poor appetite came with that.

 _A simple duelling spell cannot frazzle anyone's magic_. Only magic of extreme darkness or power can cause such an occurrence. Severus had only ever read about it, which meant he knew what would help her.

"Why didn't she seek help?" The house-elf started to bang her head against the arm of the sofa.

"Miss is going to be mad I tell you! Sir Snape, you have to leave! Oh how mad she'll be!"

"For Merlin's sake!" He got to his feet and apparated back to the potions room. He returned no longer than a minute later with a handful of potions. He gently placed them on the cobblestone floor and took the one containing a blue liquid.

He hesitated over her for a second then gently held her chin between his fingertips. Her lips parted enough for him to pour the contents into her mouth and she instinctively swallowed. Next, he moved to her neck and checked her faint pulse, then moved to pull back the sleeve of her right arm.

The house-elf jumped on him. "Mr. Snape you mustn't!" She wailed.

A menacing growl rumbled in his chest and he flicked his wrist causing her to fly back into the bookshelves. She recovered quickly on shaking legs.

"P-Please Professor S-Snape. She's...erm….she doesn't like being touched."

 _Another lie._

Severus slowly lowered his eyes to Wendy's wrist.

"S-She's going to be so angry, Mistress will be furious with Betty!" Again, she returned to pacing around in circles.

He chose to abide by what the house-elf had told him, and only touched her when administering the numerous potions. Wendy inhaled sharply and shifted on the sofa making him pause. He watched her eyes move behind her lids.

A thought occurred to him. "When did she last sleep?"

"Miss Wendy only sleeps on a Tuesday," She explained. "Four hours every Tuesday, s-sir Snape."

"What the hell do you mean only a Tuesday?" His words were followed by an awkward silence, and he saw one of the wards pass by. "Why does she only sleep on a Tuesday?"

"Mistress will be angry if I tell you!"

"You stupid fool! I do not care if she will be angry! I have a duty of care as her Professor-" Wendy moaned and shifted some more. Her eyelids fluttered a little; on the grasp of waking up, then they flew open in awareness.

Severus felt her eyes move over his body, and he snarled. "Nice of you to finally join us, Miss Nottingham."

She looked confused for a second, but her mind seemed to catch up with her surroundings and she shot to her feet. Severus caught her before she fell, lowering her back down onto the couch.

"Don't be a dunderhead," he growled. "You need to rest."

"H-How are you in h-here, s-sir?"

 _Can she not talk to me without stumbling on her words?_

"The house-elf told me that you wouldn't wake up," He explained, a natural scowl settling on his face. "You insolent child! How did you frazzle your magic?"

"Huh?" She stared at his covered chest, then her eyes flew to the house-elf. "Betty?"

"M-Miss, please forgive me!" The elf raced to her side wailing in her hands.

"W-What did you say to him?"

"How long has your magic been like this?" His words were followed by a deathly silence.

She still didn't look at him. He took notice of her trembling hands and sighed.

"Go get her something to eat!" He snapped and the house-elf nodded, then disappeared with a pop. "Now, Miss Nottingham you will kindly answer my questions so I can give you the correct treatment."

She pushed her back into the sofa, refusing to looked at him. _What a stupid girl…_ He opened his mouth to throw an insult at her, but her unstable voice cut him off.

"A m-month, sir," _Liar._

"I know you're lying, Miss Nottingham."

She cringed. "I'm n-not lying...sir."

"Say it without stuttering."

"A...month...sir," She exhaled and her eyes returned to staring at his broad chest.

"Hm," He grunted. "And what happened?"

"I-I tried performing a spell beyond my capabilities."

 _Liar_.

"Again, Miss Nottingham, without stuttering," His dark eyes roamed over her pale face.

"I tried performing a spell...beyond my capabilities...sir…"

"And why didn't you seek help immediately?" He watched her swallow hard. _She's trying to think of another lie to tell_. "I don't like liars, Miss Dumbledore."

She inhaled sharply and her gaze flew to his, shock plastered across her features and he noticed her body started to tremble more. Her chest rose rapidly and strands of her hair fell from the knot on her head. She looked mortified.

He waved his hand and Dumbledore's letter appeared between his fingertips. She eyed it suspiciously, then he thrust it towards her. She cautiously took it from him and he observed her reaction. Her face relaxed, but the more she read, the tighter and unreadable it got.

Her shoulders sagged and she dropped the letter onto her lap. A laugh escaped her lips. "My father still pesters you from the grave. He can't seem to let you live in peace."

He hadn't expected her to say that. _She just spoke to me normally._

"Professor, I'm handling things on my own. I do not need a carer-" He scoffed.

"You don't sleep, eat or care for you magic. That's not handling things, Miss Dumbledore," She glanced at one of the passing wards with a sigh.

"It's Miss Nottingham."

"As you wish, Miss Nottingham."

They both entered a heated staring match, and he caught sight of the anger in her eyes. _Albus said that she had his temper...I'd quite like to see this anxious wreck crack._

A pop pulled them away from their battle, and Betty brought over the tray of food. Wendy took it with a thankful smile, then with an absent look his way, she shovelled the food into her mouth.

"Miss!" The house-elf exclaimed. "Slow down."

"Slow down?" She mumbled with her mouth full. "I'm starving!"

Severus didn't understand where the girls nervousness had disappeared too. _Was it an act?_

"How did he get past the wards?" He narrowed his eyes at her.

"I'm standing right here, you dunderhead!" His scowl was furious, and he watched her retreat back into her normal self. Maybe she was just having a burst of confidence now she was feeling moderately better.

"Master...made it so Mr. Snape could come in without alarm," The elf hung her head in shame. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you, Miss."

"Don't worry about it, Betty."

She looked at him with a defeated look. "What is this place?" He asked.

"My father's Domain...it's f-filled with a lot of things," She explained and he heard the uncertainty in her tone. It was clear she didn't trust him, but he couldn't find it in him to care.

"So this is where you run off to," He mused to himself more than her.

Throughout the years, he had observed her behaviour from afar; she had always seemed like she had somewhere better to be. _I guess that place was here._

"S-Sir...I know you may have questions, but I'm not willing to answer them at the moment-" His harsh gaze cut her off.

"You will answer my questions," He glanced down at her clenched fists. "Do I anger you, Miss Nottingham?"

"No," It was firm response, but gave him the answer he needed. _She's definitely getting angry._ "Your questions will have to wait as I promised to meet Hagrid this evening."

With that, she pushed herself to her weak legs, and left the Domain.

 _What a stupid girl, leaving me down here. I bet I can found out the truth within minutes._

He walked over to her desk and narrowed his eyes at the parchments.

 _'The Almighty One is said to….'_

 _'Fiery burst of anger are common within the Almighty One…'_

 _'Meditation has proven to help for some, but there is no guarantee…'_

"The Almighty One?" He moved his hand to pick up one of the parchments, but this alerted the house-elf.

"No Mr. Snape!" Everything disappeared before him and the elf fled.

 _Back to square one._


	5. Chapter 5

_AN/ Thank you to the guest that informed me that the chapter wasn't loading, sorry about that!_

* * *

 **Chapter 5: Greasy Old Git.**

The crisp Thursday morning fell heavily on Wendy's shoulders. Today was the day she had Potions with Professor Snape, so it was impossible to avoid him; she had spent the past two days hiding in the Domain.

It was inevitable that she would have to face his questions, but she wasn't ready for it yet. _He isn't stupid, so he'll notice the holes in my story. I will not tell him about me being the Almighty one, I can just picture his laughter if I ever tell him._

The past few days had been bearable. Every morning she awoke to two vials of a potion, then another set would appear around ten o'clock at night. She knew it was Professor Snape getting Betty to deliver them to her. _It's kind of sweet, yet sweet is the last word that comes to mind when referring to Snape._

She was sitting on the stone wall around the back of Hagrid's hut. His snores filled the cold air, yet it soothed her a little. Osher walked over and nudged her arm with her snout.

"Hi," She whispered and patted her affectionately. "Today is going to be a long day."

The unicorn tilted her head slightly but continued to push herself into Wendy's touch.

It was said that unicorns could only stand to be touched by pure females, but Wendy wasn't pure so that debunked that theory. However, the circumstances revolving around her no longer being pure may have something to do with it.

 _I would still be pure now if it hadn't been taken from me_ , the thought made her shiver and Osher sensed her discomfort.

"Erm... hi?" Wendy looked over her shoulder and saw Potter standing there awkwardly. His hands were pushed into the pockets of his robes, and his spectacles slid down his nose.

"Hey…" She breathed out, her breath fogging in the cold.

"I see you know Osher," He stepped closer to the wall. "She's beautiful."

"Very," She whispered and continued to stroke her head.

"I-I wanted to apologise about the Duelling lesson," He explained and she regarded him with an amused expression. "What?"

"You don't have to apologise as you did nothing wrong."

"Oh," His eyes fell to the ground, then he held out his hand. "I'm Harry by the way."

She laughed. "I know who you are…"

"Oh, of course," He shifted uncomfortably.

"I've been in your year since the third year," Wendy knew that he wouldn't know who she was.

"Ah, I remember you joining us," He flashed her a flimsy smile, causing her to scoff.

"My name is Wendy," His face lit up a little.

"Nice to meet you, Wendy," She finally shook his hand and Osher wandered off. "What's your first lesson today?"

"Potions," She grunted, suddenly feeling anxious without Osher to touch.

"Professor Snape first thing in the morning, I feel sorry for you," His comment made her smile. "He's a good man."

"Hm," She began to play with her feeble fingers.

"Do you want to walk to the Great Hall with me?" He offered his hand to help her down from the wall; she got down herself, standing next to him. "OK."

…

Wendy stood at the back of the line outside of the potions room. Her feet rested inwards a bit, and she nervously chewed on her bottom lip. _He's going to find a reason to keep me behind so we can talk_. She didn't understand why he couldn't just do what her father had asked of him, _he can just watch over me and not ask questions._

 _Yes, maybe he'll do that._

 _Who am I kidding? He will not do that._

The door opened and everyone filtered in. She was the last person to walk in and the door shut behind her with a click.

Her footsteps faltered at the sight of someone sitting on the spare seat at her desk.

 _What the heck?_

He turned slightly and a sheepish smile grew on his face. She bundled her book against her chest and walked over to sit down. She moved her chair with her foot so she was pressed against the far table leg.

 _Why is he sitting here?_

"I hope you don't mind," His sandy blond hair fell in front of his eyes. "You always look so lonely back here. I thought you could use some company."

"O-Oh," She stammered, feeling heat rise to her face.

"I'm Callum," His blue eyes bore into her face. _It's not the same feeling I get when-_

"Now is not the time for socialising, Miss Nottingham!" The familiar snarl caused her to look his way.

Professor Snape's face was exactly the same. _Passive yet arrogant_. He tilted his head like he was inviting her to say something, but she let her eyes fall to the worktop.

The lesson commenced, and she kept catching Callum looking her way. They both smiled when she caught him, and her nerves flared up. _Why am I feeling like this?_

"I'm Wendy by the way," She tapped her fingers against the wood.

He smiled. "I know."

She glanced down at her potion book, following everything Professor Snape was saying. He had his back to them whilst he wrote on the board.

"I'm sure you already know what he's going on about," He whispered to her. "You're good at potions."

She licked her dry lips anxiously. "Thank y-you."

His smile brought one to her face. _OK, something is seriously wrong with me today. I just need to make it through the lesson so I can avoid Professor Snape until next Monday._

"Have you heard the news?" He leaned over to her an inch, making her shift in her seat. She shook her head. "In two weeks there is going to be a Halloween ball."

She hummed in response and regretted that her hair was pulled up into a bun. _Merlin, I want to cover my face right now._

"Miss Nottingham!" Professor Snape's hand slammed down on the desk, causing her to jump. Her eyes flew to his fiery ones. "I asked you a question."

"Erm...I-I didn't hear the question...sir," She swallowed the lump in the back of her throat, then he snarled at her.

"See me after the lesson," He turned away and returned to the front of the class.

"He's too harsh on you," Callum said and she offered him a weak smile. "He should see that you're really intelligent."

His comment made her blush, and she quickly looked away from him. _I knew Professor Snape would keep me behind...I can do this, I can lie properly._

They were set a potion to brew and Callum said he would get the ingredients. She watched him go with a confused look on her face. _How odd? More new people have talked to me today than in my whole years here._

 **DING DONG.**

Wendy jumped at the sudden intrusion into her mind, but she remembered it was only the sound to tell her that Betty had entered the Domain. Suddenly, goosebumps washed over her skin.

She slowly moved her gaze to Professor Snape, who was watching her suspiciously. Her lips parted as they entered a peculiar staring match. Now that he knew of her heritage, she was slightly paranoid that he was going to get inside her head.

Again, her tongue darted out to moisten her bottom lip and he immediately looked away, snapping to attention.

Callum returned shortly after and began to organise the ingredients into the correct order. Her eyes lingered on Snape's form as he moved around the classroom. _I wish he wasn't so sour._

"What are you going to dress up as on Halloween?" He asked and she glanced down at her potions book.

"I-I won't be going," She muttered, taking the cork out of one of the bottles. "It's not really my thing."

"You have to come!" His voice was a bit too loud and she saw Snape's head turn in their direction. "We can go...together."

"Oh...er...ha...I'm sorry Callum, it's really not my type of thing," She fiddled with the bottle. "Why are you talking to me?" She was grateful that she didn't stutter.

"Because I like you."

"Huh?" The bottle slipped through her fingertips, smashing on the floor.

Everybody turned to look at them, but she just stared at him in bewilderment. A blush crept onto his cheeks and she too felt flustered.

"Miss Nottingham!" Even Professor Snape's yell didn't pull her out of her trance. "You stupid girl-" Her eyes snapped to his.

"I-I'm sorry, s-sir."

"You'll be in detention for the next two weeks," His face was as hard as stone. She opened her mouth to respond, but his narrowed eyes cut her short. "Clean up the mess you've made."

"I-I…" She tried to use her eyes to communicate that she still couldn't perform any magic properly. For a brief second, sympathy appeared on his face, but it was soon masked with a scowl. He waved his wand; the liquid and shattered glass disappeared.

Everybody returned to the task at hand. She constantly gnawed on her bottom lip, trying to ignore Callum's looks. _Like me? Is he kidding? This has to be some kind of joke…_

The lesson soon came to an end, and Callum muttered his goodbye. She watched him go with another confused look on her face. The room became empty and she gripped on tight to her potions book.

He waved his hand, flinging the door shut with a loud slam. She flinched at the sound, then made her way to the front of his desk.

Minutes past in an awkward silence. He was staring at her; she could feel him but refused to acknowledge him.

"I see you're making friends," He drawled. "How unusual."

"He was sitting there when I came in, s-sir," _Can I just talk to him without stumbling over my words?_

"You've been avoiding me, Miss Nottingham," He sat up straight. "Why?"

"No reason," She shook her head innocently.

"Don't lie to me."

 _Bugger._

"I do not wish to answer any questions you may have," She chewed on her lip again. "Sir."

"Your lip will start to bleed if you keep doing that," She released her plump lip from her teeth, and finally looked at him properly. "I have been asked to watch over you-"

"I do not wish to be rude, s-sir," _Hold your head up high Wendy._ "But, I think you should do just that. You don't need to know the details, just know that you are doing what my father has asked of you."

He tilted his head to the side, looking her up and down. It made an unfamiliar feeling rise into her stomach.

"Miss Nottingham?"

"Yes?"

"I will find out what you're trying to hide from me."

…

Wendy took a seat on the bench in the courtyard. The air contained a chill, but nothing extreme. She opened up one of the potion books she had taken from the Domain; it occurred to her that she shouldn't be reading something unfamiliar out in the open, however, she didn't let it bother her.

 _I have detention starting tomorrow...he's so...infuriating!_ She didn't understand what his problem was. _I thought he liked being on his own. I don't stick my nose in his business so why does he have to delve into mine._

 _Well, actually, I suppose I do know everything about him._ When she had used ancient magic to heal him, the memories that she had seen weren't just of Lily, she'd seen his childhood and the way his father had treated him.

 _The poor old git can't catch a break._

"Hey," Hermione Granger took the empty space next to her.

She immediately slammed the book shut and covered it with her robes.

 _OK, something is definitely going on. Do I have a 'please-everybody-that-has-never-spoke-to-me-speak-to-me' sticker on my back?_

"Harry mentioned you had potions this morning, how was it?" She asked and Wendy blinked in response. "You'd think Professor Snape would be a lot happier now that the war is over."

"Yep," She popped the 'p'.

 _Why have two of the golden trio name-dropped Professor Snape in my presence?_

"There's a trip to Hogsmeade this weekend. Would you like to join me?"

"No," Wendy watched Hermione's face flood with confusion.

"Oh," She glanced down at her hands. "Are you sure? We could get to know one another?"

"Why?" She retorted.

"Life's too short, and I feel like we'd get on."

"What is it with you lot today?" She muttered, playing with the sleeve of her robe. "We've been around each other for over four years! Why the heck are you talking to me now?"

Her eyes widened a little. "I-I didn't mean to offend you."

"Well, you did!" Wendy pressed the book to her chest and walked off.

 _I don't understand what's going on...wait...did Professor Snape tell them?_

 _That greasy old git told them!_

 _I can't believe him!_

Her fingers curled tightly around her book as she rounded the corner. Her eyes landed on the Professor in question; he was talking to Miss McGonagall in deep whispers.

She tried to hold back her tongue, but it didn't work, she stormed over to the pair and tapped her foot waiting for them to pay attention to her. _Curse my vicious bursts of anger_

"Oh," Miss McGonagall greeted her with a smile. "How can I help you?" Professor Snape turned to look at her with a bemused face.

 _How could he tell them!?_

She looked him up and down furiously. _Just walk away Wendy, control your anger._ She tried, _I really did try_. Without thinking, she swung her booted foot forwards and it connected with his shin. He jostled forward with a grunt.

"Young lady!" Miss McGonagall exclaimed.

"Good day!" Wendy stormed off in her rage; when she was out of sight, she took off running towards the Domain.

 _I'm in so much trouble._


	6. Chapter 6

_AN/ Hello! Hope you enjoy this one, things get pretty dark at the end, nevertheless I hope you enjoy it! Please review, it helps motivate me to write more! Thank you to, **Professor Severus Tobias Snape and** **Emi** for reviewing the last chapter, I'm glad you like the shin kicking part (it was my favourite part too) :D_

* * *

 **Chapter 6: A Date.**

Wendy swallowed the knot in the back of her throat. She has been standing outside of the potions room for ten minutes, pacing backwards and forwards anxiously. _I can't go inside_. She knew he was in there because she heard him occasionally move things around. _They're going to find my body by the lake...I'm dead._

She paused, turned on her heel, raised her hand to knock, but bottled it. _I can't do it_. Usually, when her anxiety got the better of her, she would turn into her white tiger animagus, _that is out of the question I'm still too weak._

With a defeated sigh, she leant forward pressing her forehead against the cold door. A loud rumble sliced through the silence and her eyes flew to her stomach.

"Miss Nottingham!" The door flew open and she stumbled into the classroom.

Wendy regained her footing with zero elegance.

"Care to tell me why you've been standing outside my room for the past ten minutes?" His snarl was on top form today. She stood up straight and looked his way.

"I'm here for my detention, s-sir," She began to play with her fingers nervously.

"Sit down," He grunted and she walked over to one of the front desks and sat down.

He appeared in front of her; his shadow looming over her anxious form. She tried to smile the unsettling feelings away, but he didn't look amused by the situation at all.

He waved his hand over the worktop and dirty cauldrons appeared before her, a scrubber fell into a bucket of soapy water, and he walked back to his desk. _OK, I guess he's not going to mention yesterday then...that's a good thing, right?_

 _It's his fault anyway, he told the Golden Trio about me._

She got to work scrubbing the cauldrons clean, but no matter how hard she scrubbed the dirt it wouldn't clear. She cast a cautious stare in his direction to see he was busy marking work. _Surely he's not that childish._ Yet, no matter how hard she scrubbed the dirt wouldn't fade.

 _Who am I kidding, he would definitely be this petty!_

Her grip tightened on the scrubber.

"If you're having trouble Miss Nottingham, why don't you use magic to clean it up," His drawl was coated in sarcasm.

She inhaled sharply. "I still can't use my magic."

"Try," Still he didn't look at her, just continued to scribble things down on pieces of parchment.

Her cheeks turned red in anger, and she pulled her wand from her boot. Her hand shook slightly as she cast a basic cleaning spell. Wendy immediately dropped her wand when an electric like shock flew up her wand arm.

"Have you been taking the potions I gave you?" He finally looked at her; his face still stone cold. She nodded. "Miss Nottingham?"

"Yes, s-sir?"

"How long has your magic been frazzled for?" She could feel his eyes all over her body. It made her feel on edge.

"I told you a m-month, sir."

"I believe I have told you numerous times to stop lying," She didn't like the tone of his voice, it was too calm for a man so ferocious. His eyes were void of emotion and she felt it deep down to the core that he was going to hex her into next week.

"I'm not lying," She tried to stand her ground against him, but his heated stare made her divert her eyes to her boots.

"I know you're lying because magic frazzling is quick to recover from when treated immediately. A month would mean that after taking the potions for a couple of days a basic cleaning spell should be doable. Yet, you appear unable to perform such a simple spell, Miss Nottingham," He rose to his feet and walked around his desk. "You've been placed in my care-"

"Not willingly!" She snapped and her eyes widened from her outburst. "S-Sorry."

 _I really need help controlling my anger._

"You're right, however, there isn't much you can do about it. It's rather childish that you keep lying to me," She picked up her fallen wand and her fingers tightened around it.

"Childish?" A puff of air escaped her lips blowing away a strand of her blonde hair. "You just put endless amounts of dirt in cauldrons so I couldn't clean it."

He crossed his arms over his broad chest. "Ten points from Ravenclaw for talking back to a teacher."

"What!" She snapped. "Sir, that hardly seems fair!"

"Where's your stutter gone?" He mocked, causing her to recoil back into her shell. "You're quick to temper, Nottingham."

"I-I can't help it...I get it from my father," She put her wand back in her boot, then rested her hands on the desk.

He seemed to relax a bit, but his shoulders still remained stiff and his eyes gave nothing away. _Why can he read me so well?_

"How long?" He said firmly.

"My father always said that I couldn't lie to save my life," She muttered, tapping a finger against the wood. "I really thought I'd gotten better at it."

"Your lies aren't spoken with certainty," He appeared in front of the desk. "You also struggle to keep eye contact."

"Oh," A small smile appeared on her face.

"Now, tell me so I can give you the correct treatment," His voice was softer. _I've never heard him sound sincere before, it's kind of alluring._

"Will you promise not to hex me?" She glanced up at him innocently and he diverted his disgusted eyes. _Merlin, I didn't even tell him yet...what the heck was that look for?_

"Tell me."

"O-Over a year-"

"A year!" His voice boomed. "Merlin, I knew you were stupid, but not this stupid!"

 _Ouch._

"How the bloody hell have you made it this far?" She saw the venomous look in his eyes and took a step back.

"I hid in the Domain for most of the year when the castle was being repaired," She bit down on her bottom lip. "I spent two months unable to move from the sofa, then Betty helped me regain mobility. After that, I just took things a day at a time, sir."

"You stupid girl!" He snapped. "You could've died down there!"

"I-I know," She attempted to look into his fuming eyes, but quickly lost her confidence. "I'm getting better now."

"You're naive as well as stupid," He snarled. "You don't sleep or eat properly. Those are clear signs of your health deteriorating, Miss Nottingham. Why didn't you seek help sooner?"

"People would have questions," She admitted with a sigh. "Like how it happened…"

"And how did it happen, Nottingham? I'd appreciate some honesty," Wendy didn't like that she'd told him so much already. Reluctantly, she swallowed the tightness in the back of her throat, then looked into his eyes.

"I will not tell you."

He growled.

 _Did he just growl at me?_ The sound was deep and menacing, it made her stomach do a front flip. _Bugger…_

"Your detention is over, Miss Nottingham."

…

Wendy stared absently at the bookshelf before her. She was standing in the library, trying to find a book to help her with her Charms homework, but she couldn't stay focused. _I don't feel so good._ She shook her head and tried to find the book she was looking for.

It was getting late, however, she knew she needed to get her homework done so she could busy herself within the Domain over the weekend. _No going to Hogsmeade for me_. She didn't see the fun in it. She had tried to go once, but there was no enjoyment to be had out of it when you're on your own.

"Hi," She turned to look at Callum. He flashed her a luscious smile, then leant against the bookshelf.

"Hey," Her eyes fell to the floor and a blush crept onto her cheeks. _Damn it…_

"People have been talking about you today," He said and this immediately pulled her eyes back to his. "N-No, not in a bad way!" He waved his hands around frantically.

She giggled. _Did I just frickin' giggle?_

"Good," She whispered biting her lip. _I really need to stop doing that._

"They've been saying that some mysterious chick had the balls to assault Professor Snape in broad daylight," He laughed. "I saw you do it."

"Oh," She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "I didn't really assault him…"

"You kicked his shin. I think that's pretty badass of you Wendy," She blushed more when he said her name. _It sounds sexy when he says it._

"He deserved it," She caught sight of the Charms book she was looking for, and she got up on her tiptoes to reach it.

All of a sudden, she felt Callum's hard body against her back. He reached up and took ahold of the book she wanted, then handed it to her.

"Thanks, C-Callum," She pressed it against her chest and smiled at him sheepishly.

"No problem," He was only a bit taller than her - she wasn't exactly tall - yet, it was different to when Professor Snape towered over her. Wendy felt like she was Snape's prey when he did that to her. "Have you thought about my invitation to the Halloween ball?"

She shook her head. "I'd love to go, but-"

"Then come!" He exclaimed. "I promise that I won't leave your side all night. It will be just you and I having fun!"

"I-I don't know," She nervously looked away from him, then she felt his finger under her chin and returned her gaze to his.

"C'mon, allow me the honour of taking such a beautiful lady to a ball."

 _Well, bugger me…_

"O-Okay," A smile broke out on his face. _Oh Merlin, did I actually just say that!?_

"Great!" He stepped away from her. "We can talk another time about what to wear! I'll see you around!"

She watched him go with wide eyes. _I have a date? I - the loner, and outcast from society - have a date...I HAVE A DATE!_

Wendy gleeful smiled up at the ceiling as she threw her head back in joy. She did a little happy dance, then skipped over to the table she had been studying at.

…

 _Why didn't he confront me about the incident?_ Wendy glared at the book she was reading. Currently, she was sat in the Domain reading a book about rare potion ingredients, but her mind kept wondering about Professor Snape.

 _Is he waiting to use it against me?...he deserved it._

A pop filled the air and Betty walked around the corner with a tray in her hands. "Here you go, Miss."

"Thank you, Betty," The smell of the food did nothing to fuel her empty stomach. _Maybe he's right, maybe my health is getting worse._

"Mistress, you need to eat," Betty pleaded and Wendy flashed her a smile.

"I will. Go and get some rest, it's late."

She seemed conflicted for a couple of seconds but soon left the Domain. Wendy narrowed her eyes at the tray and placed it on her lap. _There are no potions with it...did he forget?_ She shrugged her shoulders, then spooned some of the food into her mouth. A blissful smile appeared on her face.

 _This is so good-_

Wendy flew towards the wooden bin by her desk and threw up the little amount in her stomach. Her whole body dry heaved in spasms as she clawed the rim of the bin. A cold breath plastered her pale neck and the fear it caused made her freeze.

The ward went to move past the opening, yet it halted abruptly. Wendy turned her stiff neck around - she swore she could hear it creak - the clothed ward disappeared underneath the cotton, causing the sheet to flutter to the floor.

Suddenly, she felt it. The pain she had hoped was long gone came rushing back; the feeling of her whole body being set on fire.

A shrill scream burst from her lips and she pulled up the sleeve which covered her Dark Mark. It began to move and change to the colour of fire, her body gave out and she began to fit on the floor screaming.

Her mind emptied itself of all logical thoughts; all she could think about was butchering her already abused arm. Hot tears fuelled the fiery sensation that rocked her body to the core, and she managed to spot the scalpel on her desk through the violent tremors.

Through the screeches of pain, she threw herself over to the desk, reached out her good arm and took the scalpel. She flopped back onto the solid ground, attempting to silence the screaming with her gritted teeth. It didn't work; it never did.

She had a death grip on the scalpel and she hovered her trembling hand over the mark. It began to glow like fire, which only made the pain worse. She inhaled sharply through a hiccupped sob then pressed the blade into her ruined forearm. Blood seeped out underneath the cold steel, and she tried to dig it in hard to cut out a chunk of the mark.

"WENDY!"

A rough hand latched onto her carving arm making all the pain in her body subside; it felt like somebody had thrown ice cold water over her. It felt good.

The last thing she saw before her eyes shut, was her body coming ever so closer to Professor Snape's broad chest.


	7. Chapter 7

_AN/ Hello! To,_ _ **Professor Severus Tobias Snape** and the **Guest** who reviewed, and those who followed and faved, many thanks! Please do not hesitate to tell me your thoughts, it lets me know you're out there and interested! Moving on! I hope you enjoy this chapter :)_

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Whom?**

The harrowing silence surrounded him, only hearing the sound of a distant clock somewhere in the Domain. Severus sat rigidly in a chair next to the sofa, where a sleeping Wendy stirred occasionally. A book lay open in his lap, but his eyes stayed focused on her right forearm. It was out in the open, healed to the best condition he could get it. He hadn't been able to stop it from scarring.

His Friday evening had been spent brewing a new batch of potions for her; it wasn't until the house-elf had arrived to ask after her missing medicine, had he realised his tardiness. It was an impulsive moment to return to the kitchen with the elf. The moment he had apparated, the shrill scream had rent the air.

Momentarily, his body froze. Millions of possibilities running through his mind. He hadn't heard such tortured cries for over a year now. However, his hesitation was short-lived, and he moved quicker than he thought was possible for his failing body. The hysterical house-elf screamed the password, and he had fled towards the piercing cries.

Severus had shouted her name. _It was a transient mishap on my part_. He was prepared to hex her to get the scalpel out of her hand, but the moment he latched onto her wrist, her whole body had given up before crashing into his chest.

It was then that he'd caught sight of the Dark Mark beneath the blood. A mark like that still had the ability to scare people away, and it succeeded for a mere second with Severus, then he moved her onto the sofa. He wasn't allowed that time to brood over the revelation as it seemed that whatever traumatic episode she had just had was about to be made much worse due to her magic frazzling.

Her body began to fit uncontrollably. Sweat poured out of her skin and mixed with the blood. The house-elf had started to bang her head against the bookshelf muttering bad words to herself. Severus had lashed out, banishing her from the Domain. He couldn't have any distractions.

Severus had forced the new batch of potions down her throat. It managed to ease her twitching body, but he then needed to focus on her bloody arm. She had succeeded in carving out a small part of the mark - _the flesh had been unsavable_ \- yet, it still reigned supreme when the blood was gone. He saw the various indents in her forearm from what he guessed were previous episodes. _She clearly couldn't focus enough to cut away the central part of the mark._

 _Why in Merlin's name did she have the Dark Mark on her arm?_

It was his main thought on that Friday night. It had been his view through the Saturday that followed, and now; in the early morning of a cold Sunday, he still couldn't force the thought from his mind. However, he didn't move from her bedside.

 _Surely, Albus must've known._

His eyes wandered over Wendy's frail body. She resembled what he had once been like after suffering torture from the Dark Lord. But, he saw no signs of torture, just self-inflicted pain.

The clothed Ward moved past the opening.

She appeared to be in a deep sleep and occasionally she would mutter something about the wards. It was unknown to Severus as to why it was troubling her within rest, but it seemed to be the one thing dominating her dreams.

Severus had tried to get inside her head. _I happen to be presented with the perfect opportunity to do so._ To no avail, he didn't find anything useful. _It doesn't matter anyhow; she cannot talk her way out of having the Dark Mark._ Not even he could.

The house-elf continued to return, and the moment he thought she had calmed down, she began to punish herself for not caring for her mistress. _How absurd that the elf cares so much._ It didn't come as a surprise to him. He had seen it in the little interaction he had witnessed. _They're close friends. Her only friend._

He was getting close to his breaking point. The need to have all the answers was killing him slowly, but he was only getting a taste of his own medicine as he had lived a life of secrecy for many years.

 _How is she Albus' daughter? As far as I knew, his interests lay with the male gender…_

"Wards…" She mumbled in her sleep and wriggled in discomfort.

Severus had discovered from the whining house-elf that there was no need to inform Flitwick that she wouldn't be in her dormitory as she hadn't been there since the fourth year. _How has nobody noticed before?_ He knew he would've if he were her Head of House. Nevertheless, it had occurred to him that Dumbledore would've easily been able to cover it up for her at the time.

His attention was brought back to the book in his lap. Severus liked to think he was a man with a broad knowledge of most potion books, but for the life of him, he couldn't recall ever hearing about the book in his possession or any of the potions inside. It had prompted him to browse the surrounding shelves, and he'd discovered a lot of new - _slightly odd_ \- books. Most had nothing to do with potions; the subjects were unique, yet, he couldn't remember ever reading about the topics they conjured up.

The end of his sweep had brought him over to her desk, where he found a journal of sorts. There had been a temptation to read what was inside, but he already knew she was going to be furious when she awoke. _I wouldn't want her kicking me in the shin again_ , he regarded sarcastically, returning his narrowed eyes to her form.

That was going to be one of his many questions. He didn't recollect any given time where he had insulted Wendy enough for it to result in physical violence, but something had boiled her blood. Anyway, he had found it more amusing than angering seeing the anxious wreck come barrelling at him in all her fury - it had made him laugh afterwards.

 _She had looked more like a woman than a mere child-_ He shook the thought from his head.

Severus wasn't ignorant when it came to the topic of awareness about the student next to him. Not once had anybody come to search for her - nor him - and he wondered if the only meaningful interaction she had was with Albus before his death.

It was hard to think about the situation. _I killed her father_. Yes, he held that guilt close to his chest, but also with his hatred towards Dumbledore. He knew he should never broach that subject with her because she would blindly defend him as he was her dad. It wouldn't matter how much he argued his point; she would never agree that her father was slightly sadistic.

Suddenly, Wendy began to shift vigorously on the sofa. A whimper tore from her lips, and it took him a second to register that she was experiencing some form of a nightmare; something he was too familiar with.

He didn't know what to do as he got to his feet and hovered over her. He reached down to touch her shoulder but paused a centimetre away. Another traumatised cry came from her mouth, and he pushed back the urge to retreat, then placed his hand on her shoulder. He had meant to shake her awake, not have her pause immediately.

She was completely still. Severus could just about see the rise and fall of her chest. For a brief moment she seemed at peace, then her eyes flew open. He was quick to return to the chair as she adjusted to her surroundings.

He watched her carefully as she stared blankly at the ceiling. Around a minute passed until she took in a huge breath, threw herself upright and gripped her forearm. She looked over at him with fear in her eyes.

"I believe you've got something to tell me, Miss Nottingham," It was a forceful statement, one that turned her fear into anguish.

Her gaze returned to the Dark Mark on her arm, and she traced her finger over the new scar. He watched her flinch as the skin was still tender, then she regarded him with an exhausted expression.

"I-I..." She swallowed hard. "I'm not a...I mean…"

"Oh, Nottingham, I have no doubt that you aren't a Death Eater," That seemed to relax her a bit. "My question is, how?" His voice was oddly calm, but that made it much worse. Many of his students had picked up that when there was a time where anger would be the only plausible reaction, and instead he spoke calmly; you should run for the hills.

However, Wendy didn't seem to sense the danger.

"Sir...what happened?" Her eyes widened as the ward passed by them. "D-Did you try to disable the wards?"

He shook his head, but his eyes pinned her to the spot on the sofa. "Answer me."

"It w-was…" She growled in frustration; as if it pained her to say the words. "It was forced upon me, Professor Snape."

Severus' fingers tightened around the arm of the chair. "By whom?"

His words made her recoil, and even he felt sick to the stomach from the look on her face. She looked close to vomiting again.

"Does it matter-"

"Yes!" He snapped causing her to flinch. "It would be in your best interest to be completely honest with me."

"I-I can't tell you who…" He opened his mouth to retort, but she cut him off. "It hurts the mark if I say his name."

Surely, it wasn't the Dark Lord who gave it to her. His mind was rushing with all the names of Death Eaters; ready to recall every single one of them, hoping she would react.

"The man who did this is still alive, of course," Some of his hair fell in front of his eyes. "Is he in Azkaban?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "I have no idea what happened to him after the w-war."

He wasn't sure what it was, but an odd emotion appeared on her face at the mention of the war. As far as he knew, she hadn't been at Hogwarts at the time, yet it only occurred to him now that she must've been down here the whole time.

"When?"

She shuddered. "I was eight…" An unnerving silence followed her answer.

He didn't let it show on his face the impact those words had on him. _Fuck…_ He wasn't good at giving sympathy, and he doubted that she wanted it, but it was difficult not to offer her something when she looked ready to burst into a flood of tears.

"He tricked me into willingly taking the mark," She explained and picked at a loose thread on the sofa. "My father always said that I was too kind...like my mother."

 _It still sounds weird when she calls Albus her father._

"Miss Nottingham, I must assure you that if I'd been there-"

"I know," He was grateful that she had cut in. "My father said that my mark was different to yours...the magic set upon it is drastically different, as I'm sure you've guessed."

"You knew I was a Death Eater before the news got out?" She nodded in response. "Yet, you weren't repulsed?"

Her eyes widened. "N-No, I was...mad at first."

 _She's lying about something_ , but he couldn't think what. "And after?"

"I understood," She glanced at him. "If it helps, I told my dad to lay off you a little," Her attempt at humour fell on deaf ears, and she immediately looked away from his sharp gaze.

"Miss Nottingham, how did you end up being in the claws of a Death Eater?" He soon regretted asking the question when her bottom lip began to quiver.

"You're asking too much," Her whimper sliced through his chest, causing an unknown response within him. He felt like he should comfort her, but couldn't find the means to do so.

"I need answers," He said, sitting up straight. "Albus expressed that you needed protection. I see why..." He looked at her arm. "However, I didn't assume you needed protection from yourself."

Finally, her tears began to fall. "I don't do it on purpose! It's the stupid curse on the mark," She wiped at her face. "He starts controlling me, filling my head with voices telling me to cut it off my skin! I can't think straight when it happens!"

He swallowed hard. "How often does this happen?"

"It was supposed to be over," She sobbed. "It hasn't happened since the war, which led me to believe he was either in Azkaban or dead!" He saw her chest was rising erratically, and her breaths were coming out fast.

"Calm down, Miss Nottingham," His voice was stern, but not harsh; he didn't want to scare her more.

"I-I can't!" She managed to cry out, and her hands flew to her messy hair as she tried to stop herself from going over the edge. "I can feel him on me."

That, he was not prepared for.

She began to scratch at her skin, violently sobbing as she struggled to breathe properly. "I CAN FEEL HIM ON ME!" Severus didn't think, just acted impulsively.

He sat down on the edge of the sofa and grabbed ahold of her frantic arms. She stopped her fidgeting, letting him catch a glimpse of the claw marks she had inflicted on herself. It was against his nature to enjoy a person's touch, yet, he pulled her against him, holding her in his embrace.

Her body tensed up as her sobs became uncontrollable. Severus muttered calm words into her ear, and as the minutes passed by, her body began to relax. She still hiccuped through her sobs, but she had finally started to breathe correctly. His shoulder was damp from all her tears, and his body remained tense from the contact.

He didn't move again until she had become completely silent. _She's asleep_. Awkwardly, he moved her back down onto the sofa, then covered her with the blanket.


	8. Chapter 8

_AN/ Thank you to Eli for reviewing! Hope you enjoy this chapter!_

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Pumpkin.**

Wendy inhaled sharply and looked at her Professor. They were walking in stride with one another - her more reluctantly - making their way towards the Great Hall for breakfast.

She'd woken up to Snape towering over her in an intimidating manner, then informing her of what would happen today. She was to eat her breakfast in the hall where he could watch her, and then she was to wait for him outside so he could see her off to her first lesson. The moment it was lunchtime, she was to head down to the kitchen and eat the lunch that Betty had prepared for her. When it came time for her Potions lesson, she was to keep her head down and not talk to anyone, and he wouldn't pick on her for an answer. Then, when it was time for her Duelling lesson, Wendy had to stand at the back and - again - not talk to anyone. Finally, she was to wait for him after the lesson, where they would go to his quarters, and she would tell him everything.

 _Not everything. Never everything._

Wendy was too exhausted to argue. _I want to go back to sleep_. Her mind was busy figuring out what information to tell Snape, and she would have to learn quickly to lie properly. _I'm not telling him that I saved his life, twice._ That was a no-go subject, so was the whole Almighty One complex. _He doesn't need to know about that_. However, she could tell him about the accident that led her to be here in this time.

 _I will tell him that I experienced my first burst of magic when I was - unfortunately - holding a time turner, which evidently sent me forward in time_. Even though going forward in time shouldn't have been possible. She was debating whether or not to tell him that her burst of magic may have been down to panic.

 _A dangerous clan of wizards were attacking the cottage when it happened...killing my mother_. She shook her head as they walked into the Great Hall. He led her over to the end of the Ravenclaw table, so she was close to the high table, and in clear sight.

She hesitantly sat down. Nobody looked her way. _What a surprise._

The food appeared before them, and her stomach jumped in excitement. _It smells glorious_. She bundled everything around her onto her plate and gazed at it gleefully.

 **Ding Dong.**

Immediately, her body stiffened. _Why do I always act so shocked? It's just Betty going into the Domain_. She felt his eyes on her but didn't bother to look in his direction. _He's never going to leave me alone now._

However, she wasn't entirely miserable that Professor Snape was to be a constant figure in her life for the time being. He had proven himself to be compassionate in a sense after spending the weekend nursing her back to reasonable health. He'd taken the news of her mark marginally well and comforted her while she panicked - _I could tell the comforting part was something he hated._

 _Nevertheless, I'm grateful for it._

Wendy grabbed her fork, licked her dry lips, then picked the bacon off her plate. The moment it touched her lips, a voice made her pause.

"You're in my seat."

She turned to look over her shoulder at a prissy looking redhead. She was flawless from head-to-toe and would be more pretty if she didn't have a bitchy look on her face. Her lip curled in disgust, and her brown eyes zoned in on her.

 _The bacon was so close to being inside my mouth._

"Move!" She snapped, waving her hand at Wendy like she was a peasant.

Once more, she could feel Snape's eyes on her, but this time, she could feel their heat all over her body. _He's listening...I don't have the energy to argue_.

"Are you simple?" She giggled. It sounded more like a squawk.

Wendy frowned at her plate, then looked around the long table. _It doesn't look like there's anywhere else to sit_. She gently placed her fork down and got to her feet.

A pain pricked at her head, sensing it was a warning from Snape, she sat back down.

"I said move! These people aren't your friends!" Wendy looked at the people ogling her and tried to swallow the lump in her throat.

Usually, her tigress side would've risen, begging to be let loose on them; however, that part of her had been pushed away for a long time. _I don't know if I'll ever be able to shift again_. The pain in her head had eased as Snape retreated from her mind, but he was still watching them.

"Move!" Her hand came down on her shoulder, causing the most inhumane growl to rumble from her lips. People stopped eating their meals to turn towards the sound.

 _Oh, bugger. The tigress is still within me._

"There you go, milady," Wendy got to her feet, bowed mockingly; gesturing to the seat. "Would you like me to feed you as well? Maybe, wipe your mouth when you chew with your mouth open? No, not enough? How about I follow you to the bathroom to clean your godforsaken arse after you've done your business?"

 _Retreat. I repeat. RETREAT_.

"Miss Nottingham, don't you think you've terrorised the girl enough," Snape appeared behind her, making everyone return to their conversations. She pinned him with a glare, which was no match for his, but she could see the mild humour in his menacing eyes.

"Bullying isn't tolerated at this school," The girl innocently fluttered her eyes at Professor Snape, who scoffed in response.

"Do shut up."

A few laughs followed as Snape led her from the Hall. When they were far enough away to no longer hear the noise, he turned on his heel to glare at her.

"Next time you will do your best to keep your mouth shut and eat your food!"

Merlin, she was tempted to reply sarcastically, _how can I eat my food if I have to keep my mouth shut?_ Luckily, she valued her life.

Wendy's confidence faltered, and her eyes fell to the floor. "S-Sorry, sir."

"Your breakfast has been moved to the kitchen. I won't be able to see you off to your first lesson, so make sure you get there," Snape explained, and she nodded. "When you go to the kitchen for lunch, eat everything the house-elf gives you, and take the potions. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," She bowed her head, and his robes brushed against her as he left. She straightened her back in time to see him walk back inside the Great Hall.

 _Today sucks_.

…

Lunch had been successful as were her earlier lessons. Wendy was beyond exhausted, and it showed on her face, but she continued to soldier on through the day. She was taking a quick break in the courtyard, flicking through some of her Potion notes.

 _Merlin, the potion Professor Snape gave me at lunch is making me more drowsy._

Her eyes scanned over the piece of parchment trying to breathe in bits of information. Despite knowing all of the things written down, it was still good to refresh her memory. _I need to decide what to do after I finish my seventh year._

Wendy had no idea what was waiting for her beyond Hogwarts, and she didn't want to find out. The Ministry had taken care of her father's will, effectively leaving her with nothing. She hadn't expected much to be left for her, but she resented that she was left here without nothing.

 _But, the memory of my father is enough. I can close my eyes and see his face if need be._

One thing Wendy wouldn't do was go to the Headmistress' office. _No thank you_. She could cope with seeing memories of her father; she couldn't bear the thought of seeing his portrait. _It wouldn't be the same as talking to him in person. I don't think my heart could take it._

Fortunately, the last time she'd been inside the office was the day before he had died. She remembered that day very vividly:

" _Father," She looked over the top of her book at her dad; who was settled comfortably behind his desk, staring at her. "Why are you looking at me like that for?" His face tightened, but there was sadness in his eyes._

" _You look just like your mother," He said, coughing to clear his throat. "Beautiful."_

 _She blushed. "Thank you."_

" _She would be proud of you pumpkin. You're at the top of your classes and heading towards a bright future," He took a sip of his tea. "A true Ravenclaw."_

" _I know you had wished me to be in Gryffindor," She closed her book and placed it on the desk._

" _At the time it seemed inevitable that you would be put there, but you truly are your mother at heart," It pained Wendy to see her father look so lost._

" _What's wrong?" She moved her chair closer to his desk and leant forward on her elbows. "Father?"_

" _I love you, dearie."_

" _I-I know, and I love you too," He reached out and took her delicate hand in his old one. "Daddy?"_

 _It was rare that she ever called him 'daddy', it was a formality used in times of innocence; but she was terribly worried about him right now._

" _My dear, it seems things may become harder from now onwards. However, I need you to stay strong for me. Do you promise?"_

" _I promise," Tears stung her green eyes. "Daddy, please tell me, what's wrong?"_

" _Nothing pumpkin. I'm just having one of those days," He gently released her hand, then got to his feet. "I have some business to take care of this evening. You should return to the Domain."_

 _She got to her feet and walked over to the door with him. Before she opened it, Wendy quickly turned and hugged him. "I love you, daddy."_

 _She felt the tear fall onto her head. "I love you too, pumpkin."_

Wendy blinked the tears away from her eyes and wiped at them with a sigh. She used the sleeve of her robes to remove the tears from the piece of parchment. _Bugger_. With a sigh that turned into a sob, she got to her feet.

"Wendy, right?" Her mood promptly changed when she looked over at Ron Weasley. _It was only a matter of time before he turned up._

"Yes," She muttered. "I'm a bit busy."

"Are you going to the library?" He asked, chasing after her when she walked off.

"No. I have Potions in a few minutes," Wendy flung her long robes over the front of her body when he kept walking into them.

"Oh, well...Could you meet me afterwards?" He asked bringing her to an abrupt halt.

"What do you want?" She growled.

"N-Nothing!" He waved his hand in front of him. "I just have something I'd like to ask you."

"Then ask me! Stop dancing around the question!" She did her best to intimidate him as Snape would, but she couldn't quite do it.

 _Maybe Professor Snape didn't tell them. He's yet to kill me for assaulting him, let's hope he's choosing to forget about it._

"Er...we should talk in private," Weasley shifted uncomfortably. "My questions are rather personal."

Wendy looked down at the book in her hand. _I should clunk him over the head and leave._ She moved to raise the book, but the sharp pain in her head returned; she turned to look at Snape. He was casually walking down the corridor, yet his eyes fixated on her.

It brought a shiver to her spine.

"Shouldn't you be in a lesson Mr Weasley?" His voice resembled a rumble of thunder.

"Ha...er...Bye!" He fled down the corridor and out of sight, leaving her behind to be scorched by Snape's eyes.

"Did you tell them!" She snapped.

"I'm going to assume your outlandish attitude today is down to your circumstances at the moment," He stared into her eyes, forcing her to look away.

Wendy gulped. "Did you t-tell them?" _Merlin, I sound pathetic._

"If you're referring to your true heritage, then no I did not, Miss Nottingham. I'm aware my past may lead you to believe not to trust me, but your secret is not one I would share without your permission."

 _I feel bad now. He looks seriously offended._

"Oh," A twisted look appeared on his face. "That explains your childish outburst in the corridor. Kicking a teacher Nottingham, are you four years old?"

Her mouth fell open ready to retort, but he waved his hand to silence her.

"Get to your lesson."


	9. Chapter 9

_AN/ Thanks to those who favourited and followed! Thank you to Chancellor for reviewing (I'm glad you're liking the story so far - I plan to make this at least fifty chapters long!) Please leave me a review, I know you're out there reading, so please motivate me to write more :)_

* * *

 **Chapter 9: Grief.**

"You should dress up as Superwoman; I've heard she's a Muggle superhero, then I can go as Superman," Wendy pushed her chair far away from Callum as he rambled on about the Halloween Ball. He had been waiting outside the Potions room for her and had yet to take a single breath while he talked on about how amazing the night was going to be.

"I don't know," She whispered, opening up her Advanced Potions book.

"You can't back out on me now," He winked, and she immediately looked away feeling her cheeks heat up. "I saw the incident with Mindy this morning."

"Oh," She bit down on her lip. "I didn't get much sleep over the weekend, so I'm a bit cranky."

 _Wow, I'm not stumbling on my words._

"She deserved it," He nudged her arm playfully making her laugh. "He seems to be in a foul mood as usual," He nodded towards Professor Snape.

Wendy looked over and saw that there was nothing different about him. His face was still tense and bared his famous scowl; those dark eyes were still terrifyingly empty. _He'd be more handsome if he didn't scowl so much._

She pushed the thought to the back of her mind and focused on what Professor Snape was saying. It wasn't anything new to her, so she let her thoughts drift away.

 _Somebody had been taking down my wards when the Dark Mark started burning._ _It couldn't possibly be who I think it is. Rufus was alive for sure, but he shouldn't be able to get close enough to Hogwarts to take down the wards, especially those in the Domain._

The thought of Rufus made her body tense. She felt blessed to this day that she hadn't crossed his path during the war; all she knew was that he was involved in the fight. The night of the battle for her included a lot of blood. _Professor Snape's blood to be exact_.

He had been dead by the time she got to the shack, yet she'd still decided to save him. _What if he wanted to die?_ That thought had haunted her throughout her days of immobility. _I can't think like that; I did a good thing._

There had been times when she wished to scream at him that she'd saved his life; just to see how he would react, but he was predictable. _He would put me at number one on his list of people he wants to hurt._

"I'll get the ingredients," She looked over at Callum and saw him walk away. _Why's he showing interest in me?_

It was an odd concept. _I'm not pretty, nor do people - ever - want to date me_. She had accepted already that she would die alone, but it didn't bother her as much as it should. Rufus had ruined all hope of future relationships.

Wendy moved to collect the equipment they'd need for the potion, and lay them out neatly.

 _ **DING DONG.**_

"AH!" She screamed in fright, almost knocking the cauldron off the table. People looked at her with perplexed faces, and she awkwardly smiled them off.

 _I need to alter the wards later on. Their signals keep getting louder each time, or maybe I should tell Betty to stop going into the Domain so much._

A shadow covered her.

"Does something about Potions frighten you, Miss Nottingham?" _He's mocking me._

"N-No, sir," She bit hard on her lip and kept her eyes level with his chest.

"Then why do you frequently jump as if you've been scared in my lessons?" The rest of the class had returned to sorting out their potions.

 _He noticed._

"H-How-"

"I've observed for awhile that you jump out of your chair randomly a lot of the time, Miss Nottingham," She fiddled with the rim of the cauldron.

"Er...well you see…"

"I guess it's something you can discuss with me at your detention later this evening," With that, he walked off.

 _I forgot that I have detention for the next two weeks._

Callum returned and asked her if she was OK. After reassuring him numerous times, he finally stopped his questioning. They agreed that she would talk him through each step, while he did the practical work. It would prove to be challenging if she did it as she wasn't sure if she could perform the necessary charm to stir what was in the cauldron.

 _Maybe I can have a go at some spells later on. If Professor Snape supervises me, then he can see if my condition is getting any better._

The next half hour passed by quickly. Callum engaged her in small talk, and she was surprised at how well she was dealing with it. She still felt awkward, but her anxiety wasn't resting on her shoulders. _Talking to him is easier than usual._

"Oh, I forgot the lionfish spines. Would you mind grabbing them?" He asked, and she nodded her head, glancing at the pink coloured potion.

They were making Wiggenweld Potion - _a healing potion_ \- which she'd made countless times; it wasn't something she could mess up. She walked into the storeroom and scanned the organised shelves. _I bet Professor Snape prides himself in keeping this place clean_ ; she smiled as she pushed herself onto her tiptoes to reach the lionfish spines.

 _ **KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK**_

Wendy walked out of the storeroom to see everyone was staring at the door. Snape grumbled curses under his breath as he opened the door. She couldn't see who was standing there, and she wondered for a second if it was Flitwick, because she couldn't see anyone beyond Snape's shoulder.

In an instance, her anxiety smacked down onto her shoulders. She could see Betty's worn-out clothes and her nimble feet; they were curled inwards slightly, clearly nervous to be standing at the door. Snape turned around to look at her with an angry look on her face.

 _What did I do now?_

He slammed the door shut, making many people jump including her. _What just happened?_ She swallowed hard, then returned to her seat.

Everybody got back to work.

"What's his problem?" Callum whispered, and she shrugged her shoulders. "Was that a house-elf at the door?"

"Yes," She replied, beginning to crush the lionfish spines.

Her eyes kept going back to the door where Betty had been. _What did she want? It must be something important if she interrupted a lesson. Is she even allowed to do that? Oh, Merlin what if something's happened in the Domain? No, not possible, the wards would've notified me!_

"If you can think that hard while grinding lionfish spines you should be able to brew a successful potion, Miss Nottingham," Snape snarled, and she regarded him with a dry look.

 _He said not to bring attention to myself. So, why does he keep talking to me?_

Thankfully, the lesson came to an end without any more interruptions. Wendy quickly moved within the wave of students to get towards the Great Hall for her Duelling lesson. Professor Snape was not far behind them, and she could feel his eyes burning a hole into the back of her head.

Wendy stood at the back of the crowd around the stage and watched as Snape walked onto it. His face was tighter than before; it gave away that something was weighing on his mind. _I'd love to know what goes on inside his head._

"Hi," Potter appeared next to her.

"Hi," She crossed her arms over her chest.

"Can we talk after the lesson is over?" He asked, and she shook her head.

"I've got detention with Professor Snape," She explained. "Even if I didn't, I wouldn't want to talk to you."

She heard him sigh. _What do they want? It's starting to get boring now._

"You look tired."

She scoffed. "Thanks."

"I-I didn't mean it in a bad way!" He exclaimed. "You just look exhausted."

She rolled her eyes. "I am because you keep harassing me."

"I'm sorry," He whispered meekly. "I feel like I'm talking to Snape when I speak to you."

 _Well, I'll take that as a compliment_ , she smirked to herself.

"Just tell me what this is all about," Flitwick began to talk to the class, and she found her eyes wandering towards Professor Snape. Their eyes met instantly, and she flinched away from the nonexistent contact. Her stomach felt heavy, and she made sure her eyes stayed focus on the floor.

"My friends and I discovered a letter in Professor McGonagall's office," He explained. "From Dumbledore."

Her breathing hitched in the back of her throat, and she looked at him.

"There is a lot of interesting things written in the letter...about you."

"You know don't you?" She pinned him with her most fierce glare, then he nodded.

Potter reached into his robes and pulled out a crisp envelope. She saw that his hand was shaking slightly, but not as much as hers when she took it from him. Her name stood out in her father's handwriting on the back; she bit down on her bottom lip, willing herself not to cry.

"Will you consider talking to me after the lesson?" He asked.

"I-I can't," She stammered. "My detention is essential."

"Why? I don't understand how you can stand to be around the man that killed your father-"

She didn't even think; her body just reacted by its free will. She kicked the back of Potter's legs making him crumble to the floor before he could think to pull out his wand, she retrieved hers from her boots; her foot came down onto his throat, and she pinned him still with her wand pointed at his face.

Wendy was aware of everybody's eyes on them. Her hands shook giving away her lack of confidence, but she couldn't stop the rage inside of her. It wasn't fair for him to say that.

Merlin, she had wanted Snape to die so bad, but she'd come to terms with it. Her father had been heading towards death's door before Snape had killed him. Also, her dad had told him to do it.

The war hero beneath her wasn't squirming. He just stared back at her with apologetic eyes.

"Miss Nottingham," Snape appeared behind her. His robes brushed against her back as his dark figure towered above her. She gripped tightly to her father's letter then sighed, taking her foot off Potter's throat.

"I'm sorry," She whispered as Potter got to his feet. "S-Sir, can I please be excused," She looked into Snape's eyes, pleading with him to let her go without argument. An unfamiliar emotion appeared in his eyes, but it soon faded when he nodded his head.

She fled the Great Hall and heard Snape order everyone to be quiet.

…

Somebody was trying to take down her wards.

When Wendy had returned to the kitchen after her Duelling lesson, Betty had told her that she'd be down in the Domain when the wards stopped moving. That's why she panicked and tried to find her. _I'm in serious trouble_. It meant that she needed to strengthen the wards, but she was still too weak to do so.

 _I'm going to have to ask Professor Snape for help._

She felt mostly prepared for their talk. Her father's letter rested in the sleeve of her robe, unread. The seal had already been broken from the Golden Trio's snooping; she was too frightened to look inside.

Wendy walked down to the dungeons and headed towards the Potions room. _I'm going to make it through without any mistakes_. She held her head up high and knocked on the door; it swung open without a word from Snape.

Cautiously, she entered.

He was sat behind his desk, marking work. He didn't look at Wendy as she sat down in the seat opposite him. She watched him furiously scribble a comment on a student's work; then he placed his quill down with a quick tap.

His blazing eyes met hers.

 _Oh, bugger I'm in trouble!_

"I do believe I told you not to draw attention to yourself," His calm voice didn't match his scary eyes. "Your lack of ability to follow instructions proves your stupidity."

 _Ouch._

She opened her mouth to speak, but he cut her off. "Now, Miss Nottingham, after finding out that Albus is your father I had a lot of questions that I needed answers to. As the days have gone on, that list keeps getting longer. For somebody so simple, you appear to be hiding a lot. I expect complete honesty from you."

"OK, s-sir."

Wendy felt all of her confidence flee her body. _He scares me_. She wanted this to be over soon so she could get some well-deserved sleep, but his wrathful demeanour hinted that she was going to be here for a long time.

"What happened with Potter in Duelling?" He asked, relaxing back into his chair.

Her jaw clenched. "I found out why the trio have been showing an interest in me all of a sudden. They discovered a letter from my father addressed to me, which they opened and must've found out I'm his daughter."

"Have you read this letter?" She pulled it from her sleeve.

"Not yet...I'm too scared," She admitted. "I feel exhausted, and it will only cause me more grief."

He grunted in response. "Why did you attack him?"

"He made an unfair comment, and I reacted without thinking."

"What did he say?" Wendy could sense he was getting annoyed already as he had to keep pushing questions just to get to the simple answer.

"Does it matter?"

"Yes," He muttered, leaning forward with his hands linked together. Wendy awkwardly looked away from him and pulled on a loose thread.

"He asked me how could I stand to be around the man that killed my father," She was glad that she managed to say it without stuttering. Her eyes made their way back to his, and he was watching her curiously.

"And that comment provoked you to take him to the ground?"

"Yep," She popped the 'p', hoping to appear nonchalant about the situation.

"For once, Potter made a good point," He said. "I killed your father."

"I know," She focused on some of the parchments on his desk. "I came to terms with that a long time ago, s-sir."

Silence. Awkward silence.

He cleared his throat. "How is it possible that you're Albus' daughter?"

"The story is unbelievable but very true," She sighed, and he narrowed his eyes. "I was born on the 24th of July 1928."

More silence.

"Don't lie to me, Miss Nottingham!" He snapped.

"I'm not lying," She didn't snap back at him, not wanting to cause an argument. He leant back in his chair, and she felt his eyes all over her body. "To be blunt with you sir, I was a mistake," Her comment brought tears to her eyes, and she glanced at him.

Snape was observing her with a look of great scrutiny; a look he would've used while being a Death Eater.

"I'm aware that my father preferred men over women - I don't have objections to that. He and my mother spent a drunken night together that resulted in me," She bit her bottom lip. "My father bought a cottage near Hogwarts, and my mum moved in. For seven years they both did what was best for me. My dad was always around; I know that they didn't love one another, but they got along well. Anyway, when I was seven...erm...w-well…" She sniffled as a tear fell from her right eye.

"My father was at work like normal, and mother was in the garden. It was a typical day, to begin with; I've never known something to go wrong so fast. I don't remember much about being that age, but I remember that day vividly. A-A dangerous clan of wizards attacked the cottage. I'd been snooping in my father's office when I heard my mum scream...that's why I struggle with sleep, s-sir, it haunts my dreams."

"They started to destroy the house, the walls started shaking, and things were falling off the shelves. That's when the time turner fell next to me. Father said it was because I'd been panicking, so when I accidentally placed my hand over it; unfortunately, I experienced my first burst of magic. It had been a powerful burst, which resulted in me - somehow - being thrown forward in time instead of backwards."

"I ended up appearing before some Death Eaters. They took me, locked me up, tortured me, gave me the Dark Mark, and kept me in a dungeon for six years. When I was thirteen, my father showed up with Hagrid and saved me."

Wendy choked on her sob and wiped her tears away. She could still see that day clearly in her mind. Her father had told her what had happened to her mother. _Murdered._ Left to be found by her dad when he returned from Hogwarts.

She hadn't thought much on how Snape would react to hearing the information but never had she expected him to get up, crouch down in front of her, and place a comforting hand on her arm. Wendy could see it in his eyes; the sign that he understood some of the grief she was experiencing.

"There's no need for more questions today," His voice was rough. "Go and get some rest, Nottingham. I'll see you tomorrow for your detention."


	10. Chapter 10

_AN/ Hello! Thank you to **Professor Severus Tobias Snape** for reviewing once again! And thank you to **Lady Jensen** for leaving your question - to clear things up incase anybody else is a bit lost Wendy is 19 now. She had turned 18 when she was doing her original 7th year, then the war happened, and it took a year to rebuild Hogwarts so she is 19. She didn't age when she travelled forward in time - she was seven at that time - and she was locked up for six years until she turned 13, then she was rescued and joined the trio in their third year. _

_Please leave me a review, it gives me brain power! :)_

* * *

 **Chapter 10: Friendship.**

Wendy didn't remember what her mother looked like; it was the worst part of losing her at a young age. There weren't any pictures of her because everything perished in the fire caused by the clan. All of their memories burnt that fateful morning, and those evil people had taken away one of the key people in her life.

Her father had to live on with the thoughts that Wendy had died in the fire until he managed to uncover that she was being held captive. To her father, decades had passed, and he dealt with the grief of losing his only child and a dear friend.

Their relationship was beautiful. Wendy dreamed of finding a friendship like her parents had shared. _My mother accepted who he was, and supported him through his endeavours. She was just happy that she had a daughter while living in harmony._

 _My father gave my mum a friendship ring after some woman called her a crude name for having a baby out of wedlock. Mother was to tell people that she was happily married, but it didn't bother her that it wasn't the truth._ Wendy had read her mother's thoughts in her journal, one of the only things that hadn't burnt in the fire as it had been out in the garden the time of the attack.

Her mother's journal stayed in its place at Wendy's desk in the Domain. When she felt sad, it would find its way onto her lap, where she would smile at her mother's quirky thoughts. However, she only wished she could remember the way she looked.

 _Father had offered his memories to me_ , but the one time he had tried she only saw the back of her mother while she bled out on the grass. That night had been full of hysterical cries.

"Wendy, I think somebody wants ya attention," She was pulled out of her thoughts by Hagrid, who was looking out of the window at Osher.

She stifled a laugh. "Do you mind?"

"Course not girly. I got work to do," He ushered her out the back door, and took his leave.

Osher came racing over, nuzzling her face against the side of her head. _I'd give anything to shift into a tiger right now._ She missed the freedom it brought her, and how exhilarating it was to run with other animals. One of the times when her rage had engulfed her, she had mauled a deer in the forest; it was hard to control those deep, animalistic instincts when furious, and it had resulted in her shifting back to normal and sobbing on the woodland floor.

Wendy had come to Hagrid to have one of their weekly chats. She'd explained that Professor Snape knew she was Dumbledore's daughter, his response had been to ask if she was OK continuously. She had almost told him about the Domain but refrained from doing so; _maybe I shouldn't be so secretive. It's not like Hagrid is the one trying to take down my wards._

The autumn breeze picked up, making her cheeks flush a pink shade. She grinned at Osher, and they both walked side by side.

Last night her sleep had been plagued by her mother's screams, so she spent the early hours of the morning reading through her mum's journal. It had brought her peace which was why Wendy's mood was chirpy and glowing.

Her lessons had passed by with ease, and she was awaiting the time for dinner in the Great Hall. _I refuse to be moved from my seat this time._ Queen Bee Mindy has always caused her trouble. She was the exact definition of a bully, making everyone she considered below her feel useless. The teachers never did anything to stop her - _excluding Snape_ \- because she fluttered her long eyelashes at them and puckered her lips. _If I ever did that, people would laugh at me; I can just picture the mortified look on Snape's face._

Wendy patted Osher's mane. "I have to go now," She gave her a longing hug, then made her way to the Great Hall.

She managed to walk without being pushed around by the crowd, _what an achievement_ , she regarded sarcastically. Callum waved at her from the Hufflepuff table, and she briefly nodded at him. She took a seat quickly before somebody could steal it from her.

Curiously, she looked at the High Table. Professor Snape sat next to the Headmistress seeming bored with her talk. His eyes immediately flew to hers. _Bugger_. She focused on her plate and began to pile a mountain high of food. _This time the food will make it into my mouth_.

The nightmare from last night sprung to mind. Mostly, it had been about her mother's screams, but near the end, the scene had changed to her bloody hands shaking over Snape's lifeless body. _There was blood everywhere_. If Snape ever saw that memory, he'd freak out after seeing his student crying hysterically over his dead body.

 _Merlin, I had no idea what to do. For five minutes I cried, but my mind soon cleared and I knew what spell I needed to use._ His body had started to glow, while a magical light force crashed into her chest causing her body to fit next to his. More minutes had gone by then her fitting had stopped; with her body alight with heaps of power, she had slammed her hands onto his chest, and the magic exploded around them.

Wendy's body had started to shut down, but she managed to push through the pain and focus on the light that was returning to his body. After everything had dispersed, and the glowing light faded, the tips of her fingers began to spark as her magic went dormant. Her eyes had caught onto the rise of his chest, then with one last push of her magic, she Apparated away.

 _Only to be viciously beaten by two Death Eaters, thankfully, the centaurs came to my rescue._

She shovelled the food into her mouth, then grabbed the gravy to pour over her mash. A few people gave her weird looks, but she brushed them off. _I'm too hungry to care._

Dinner passed by without any incident, and she lazily strolled towards the Potions room. Her hair had started to fall off her head, so she took the time to fix it back up. She hated her hair with a passion. _People have this desire to have thick and long hair, but there's nothing to want over; I can't even brush it properly, nor wear it down._

Arriving outside his rooms, she rapped her knuckles against the solid door. It slowly opened before her, and she dragged herself inside. He was sitting in his usual spot behind his desk. However, he was focusing on her entrance and not ignoring her for once.

 _How did he not pass me in the corridor?_ She shrugged at the thought.

"Take a seat," He grunted, and she sat down opposite him. "Did you eat enough at dinner?"

"Yes," She beamed, tempted to rub her full stomach.

"And did you take your potions this morning?" She nodded. "Good, now I want you to attempt to levitate this quill," He placed the darkly feathered quill in front of her, and she pulled her wand from her boot. "Empty your mind and take your time."

She nodded again, then took in a deep breath. " _Wingardium Leviosa,_ " The quill began to rise a few centimetres from the desk. "I'm doing it!" Suddenly, a shock tore up her arm causing her to yelp and toss her wand to the floor.

Snape scoffed. "I told you to keep your mind empty."

"S-Sorry, I got excited sir," She retrieved her wand, then glared at the quill.

"Clearly," He snarled. "Excitement will not help you get better, Miss Nottingham. I expect you to try your best to get over your magic frazzling."

"Yes, sir," She slipped her useless wand into her boot, then looked at him.

"The story of your existence is unbelievable," He saw she was about to cut in and silenced her with a look. "But true nonetheless. Hypothetically speaking you're older than me, but it appears your trip through time didn't age you a single bit," Wendy nodded along to the things he said. "I understand that part, but I still have more questions."

"I will answer them the best that I can, sir," _Stutter free, I think I deserve a high-five_.

"You will answer them honestly, Nottingham. I know when you're lying, don't forget that!" His rough voice sent a shiver down her spine. _I wish he'd loosen up a bit._ "Why are there times when you jump as if someone scared you?"

"I have the wards in the Domain inform me of the ongoings inside, which means they let off a loud noise whenever Betty goes inside," She explained. "I can't lower the sound because of my frazzled magic. It catches me off guard, that's why I jump occasionally."

He leant forward, regarding her with a harsh gaze. "You kept muttering about wards in your sleep."

"O-Oh...well you see sir, I think somebody is trying to take them down," She absently stroked the mark through her sleeve. "When the mark started burning again, the wards disappeared as if someone had succeeded for a mere second...I thought it was you, but apparently, I was wrong."

"You think somebody is trying to get into the Domain?" She nodded. "Who?"

"The only people that know of its existence are you and I...oh and Betty of course," She shifted uncomfortably in the chair. His jarring stare didn't disappear. "But…"

"What is it, Nottingham?" He seemed to be more patient with her this time.

"He can find me through the mark," She whispered, looking down at her right arm. "Before the war, he never had any reason to look for me. He just enjoyed torturing me from afar, but now, he has all the more reason to come after me."

"And why's that?"

"Because I don't have anybody to protect me," She looked back at him with a pained look in her eyes. He didn't give away if it affected him, but she knew it wouldn't. _He's a tough nut to crack._

"Hm," He grumbled.

"I'm guessing that's why my father asked you for help because he knew there was a possibility that he would come looking," She sat up straight and tried to brush the anxious feeling off her shoulders.

"Write his name down for me," His husky voice stunned her into silence. He pushed a piece of parchment her way and held out a quill for her to take.

Slowly, she moved her shaking hand to take it from his, and their fingers brushed briefly. It left behind a tingling sensation at her fingertips, but the passive look on his face showed that he didn't feel it.

"Miss Nottingham," He pushed, and with a quick longing look his way, she scribbled his name down onto the parchment and slid it back to him.

Wendy studied his face for his reaction, but nothing appeared on his stone cold face. His eyes moved away from the name written on the parchment and focused on her. He moved his hand to a drawer under his desk and soon placed four phials on the wooden surface.

The purple liquid glistened in its confines. "Dreamless sleep potions?"

"That should be enough to last you two weeks, but that's all I can give you," His hoarse voice made her face soften. He was stiff in his chair; the revelation had unsettled him, it came as a bit of a shock to her.

She grabbed the four phials and smiled at him. "Thank you, sir."

He soon returned to his usual self. "Don't thank me, Miss Nottingham. I'm only giving you the necessary potions to benefit your wellbeing. You'd get the same treatment if you went to Madam Pomfrey."

"Of course, sir," The smile didn't fade from her face, which furthered his scowl.

"What are you so happy about?" He snapped annoyance ringing throughout his tone.

"Nothing, sir," The excessive use of 'sir' appeared to annoy him more.

"Get out, Nottingham!"

Wendy threw a smile over her shoulder as she left, and when the door shut behind her, a giggle tumbled from her lips. _Who would've guessed that Professor Snape could be sweet?_ She laughed all the way back to the Domain.

…

"You can't sit there!" Mindy's shrill voice cut through the silence of the library the next day. _Madam Pince is going to be pissed._

"And why not?" Wendy shot back, not looking up from her Charms essay.

"My friends and I are going to study here in a few minutes," She stepped closer to the chair Wendy was sitting on.

"I was here first," This didn't appease Mindy, so she slammed her hand over the parchment, smudging the ink.

"Move!" She glowered down at her like she was the scum of the earth. _A bully in its true nature_.

"I thought it was the Slytherins that were meant to bully other people? Not the dear old Ravenclaws!" Wendy finally glared back at her. _This hussy ruined my essay!_ "Back off."

"You don't get to tell me what to do," Mindy's red hair tumbled over her shoulders as she leant further down to face her. "Now move your fat arse off the chair."

Wendy's fingernails clawed into the wooden table. _Oh, bugger_. She could feel her tigress side becoming stronger within her. _Deep breath in, and out_.

"Do you enjoy bullying people?" She retorted. Mindy threw her arms out, sending Wendy flying off the chair. She landed on the floor with an oomph.

"Look how easy that was," She chuckled and sat down on the chair. With a swipe of her hand, Mindy pushed all of Wendy's work onto the floor next to her. "I'd clean that up if I were you. Wouldn't want to anger Madam Pince."

Wendy felt the wetness fall from her eyes. _I can't believe I'm crying in front of her_. She moved quickly, bundling her belongings against her chest, then fled the library. _How pathetic can I get?_

In her haste, Wendy collided with a solid chest as she rounded a corner sending all of her things crashing to the floor again. Immediately, she dropped to her knees to retrieve her work.

"I'm sorry-" She looked up at Professor Snape with teary eyes. "Sir!" She exclaimed. _This day couldn't get any better,_ she remarked sarcastically. Wendy gathered her things back into her arms, then stood up.

His heated eyes stopped her from running off. "Why're you crying?"

"Erm...it's nothing," She muttered, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand.

"Nothing?" He replied. "Nothing was the cause of you running down the corridor crying?"

 _I can't argue with that_. "I just had an encounter with a girl from my year, sir. I'm not proud that she managed to reduce me to tears."

"Which girl?" He growled

"Mindy Roan," She watched Snape shift slightly, then he returned to his usual demeanour.

"Run along, Miss Nottingham," Wendy did as she was told and fled the corridor.


	11. Chapter 11

_AN/ Hello! Thanks again to **Professor Severus Tobias Snape** for reviewing, and to those who followed! Please don't hesitate to let me know what you think! :)_

* * *

 **Chapter 11: Nothing More, Nothing Less.**

"I've got your outfit ready. Do you want to come and get it later on?" Callum asked as they walked into the Potions classroom.

"I've got detention straight after dinner," Wendy took her seat and opened up her potions book. "How about you bring it to me tomorrow?"

"Sure," He beamed over at her. "Did you hear that the dungeon bat made Mindy cry?"

 _Dungeon bat? Oh..._ She watched the man in question march into the room with his robes billowing behind him.

"Cry?" She retorted.

"She was a blubbering mess by the time he'd finished talking to her in front of everyone in the corridor. I wonder what he said to make her cry so badly?" Both of them watched Professor Snape hover over his desk and pull out a book, then turn towards the board and write information down.

 _He made Mindy cry...because she made me cry? No, there's no way that's true._ Callum nudged her arm.

"Mindy deserved it. She's always been a bully, it's about time someone gave her a taste of her own medicine," Wendy found it odd that Callum kept bringing up Mindy whenever they were together. _Maybe I'm just thinking too much about it._

The lesson passed by quickly and Snape didn't look her way once. He didn't come over to check their potion, nor tell them to shut up when Callum babbled on next to her. _How strange? Did I offend him?_

She shrugged at the thought, then left the classroom. She kind of wanted him to ask her to stay behind; it didn't matter anyway as they would be seeing each other later at her detention. Last night's detention had been the start of his strange behaviour. He made her clean cauldrons and prep ingredients, not once asking the questions she knew he had. _Something is troubling him._

"Hello," Potter cut in front of her. "Can we talk?"

 _For Merlin's sake_. "I have a lesson to get to-"

"No you don't, you're usually in the library this period. 'Mione told me," His words made her eyes narrow.

"Are you keeping tabs on me?" Her voice was shrill causing a few people to look their way. "I think I made it very clear that I don't want to talk to any of you."

"We want to help-"

"With what!?" She yelled. "I don't need help!"

"I was very close to Dumbledore which means we should talk," He explained, ignoring her blatant signals that she wished to be anywhere but here.

"Potter," Her voice was low. "Don't you dare think you knew him like I did...Don't for a second think you can come to me to reminisce about him. He wasn't your friend, he was your mentor and Headmaster. Nothing more, nothing less."

"You don't know that-"

"I know everything, Potter," She stabbed her finger against his chest. "I know every little detail about every little thing," Each point was punctuated with a poke. "You and your friends were pawns in my father's game, OK? I'm the only person that knew who he truly was - regardless of his cynical ways - I loved him, meaning I lost way more than you did when he died."

Potter sighed. "In the letter, he mentioned that he hoped we could become friends."

"What?"

"You haven't read it yet?" She shook her head. "Read it."

"Don't tell me what to do, Potter," She bawled her fingers into a fist. "I have things to do," Wendy barged past him and stormed off in the direction of the library.

 _Father, I know you mean well, but you're worsening my grief right now. I just want to be left alone._

She buried herself in her books and focused on rewriting the Charms essay Mindy had ruined yesterday. Ten minutes in and she lost her patience, her hand wouldn't stop shaking and she felt the overwhelming urge to cry. _Oh how I wish to just scream, just one big clamorous scream._

Wendy had never gotten around to grieving properly for her father. The weeks following his death had been filled with attempts to end Snape's life. She'd only broken down once; while Hagrid rocked her to sleep, but that had been all. Sometimes things got too much so she had a little cry in the Domain, other than that, she hadn't had time to come to terms with it.

 _I need a week away from Hogwarts._ It was hard enough that she expected to see her father walk around the corner, or come out of his office. She wanted him to come and comfort her after a nightmare, then offer her sweets. She missed his gravelly voice when he sang a lullaby to her.

 _I miss him so much._

Her bottom lip began to quiver and the tears dispersed the ink on the parchment. _Here I am, crying again in the library._

"Um...are you alright?" A squeak came from next to her, and Wendy's head turned in the direction of a too small seventh year. Her hair was almost white, yet when you looked hard enough there were flecks of gold throughout. Her eyes were a deep brown - a striking contrast against her pale complexion. Her Slytherin robes blanketed her tiny frame; pooling the floor around her.

The button-nosed Slytherin moved to sit opposite her. "I'm Violetta."

"Hi," She whispered back feeling nervous, then quickly wiped her tears away. "Are you new?"

"Yes, I transferred here from the Durmstrang Institute," She said. "My parents moved out there before I turned ten, then we moved back to England a few months ago."

 _She looks like the secret love child of Lucius Malfoy,_ Wendy bit her lip to stop herself from smiling.

"I've heard good things about the Durmstrang Institute," She replied, trying to steer the conversation away from her crying.

"It was OK," She muttered, then eyed her suspiciously. "Why're you upset?"

"Oh, w-well it's nothing really...I'm just stressed out," _What is it with me and sounding pathetic?_

"I understand. The seventh year is the toughest one," Wendy was grateful that she wasn't going to push it any further. "Hogwarts is not as good as I imagined it to be."

"The papers tend to big it up too much," She smiled wiping her tears from her essay. "It's just your average witchcraft and wizardry school."

"Well, the Dark Lord was defeated here so I guess that's something to be proud of," Violetta pulled out a piece of paper that had her timetable written on, and slid it over to Wendy. "Do we have any lessons together?"

Wendy scanned the page, then nodded. "We have Charms and Herbology together."

"That's great!" She exclaimed. "I'm not very good at making friends."

"Neither am I," She replied. "You're doing a good job at it though."

This made her blush. "Thank you...do you have any friends?"

"I have a house-elf that cares for me as I care for her...then, I kind of have somebody that watches over me, but he isn't exactly a friend."

"I don't understand why you don't have friends? I like talking to you!" She bounced in her seat and Wendy laughed.

"Most people don't share the same opinion as you, nevertheless, thank you," She looked down at her Charms essay and decided to scrap it. _I'll rewrite it later._

…

Her father's letter stayed in the waistband of her skirt throughout the day. She had returned to open it at lunch time, but chickened out. She'd completely forgotten about it when she was in Herbology, as she was bonding with Violet - _she told me to call her that._

They both had an interest in reading, but it turns out that Violet hates Potions with a burning passion. _Professor Snape will only add fuel to that fire._ Wendy liked listening about her family. She had muggle parents who loved each other very much and wanted the best for their daughter in the world of magic. _I wonder how the Slytherins dealt with having a Muggle join their house._ Draco Malfoy had returned to finish his seventh year; Wendy had seen him once but knew he'd have a hell of a lot to say about it.

She paused outside of the Potions room, then knocked.

No reply.

Wendy knocked again, yet he didn't answer. She placed her hand against the door and pushed it open. "Hello?" She called out and was met with the silence of an empty classroom. "Professor?" _Maybe he's in his private chambers? Best not go looking there...he'd hex me._

She cautiously approached the door that led to his private rooms, then quickly knocked.

Nothing.

Suddenly, the door creaked open. "Sir?" She paused in the doorway, then pushed the door open the rest of the way. Her mouth opened agape at all the books lining the walls. "Bloody hell…" She walked further into the room and stopped in front of his desk. There was a door to her right which she assumed was his bedroom. _I'm definitely not opening that door._

 _The room is very...Snape-ish. I understand why people call him a dungeon bat now._

She felt her father's letter branding itself into her hip. With a swipe of her hand, she retrieved it from her waistband and glared at her name on the envelope. _I should get it over and done with._

Wendy was struck with a sudden thought. _Why did the door open by itself? Surely he has strong wards up?_ Her eyes faltered on the Daily Prophet residing on his desk - its date was a couple of months old. She reached out to scan over the front, her lip curling at the article.

She didn't read the newspaper often. _I think I should start though._

There in black letters was the headline that Rufus Omberford had escaped from Azkaban, but the worst part was how easy it was to miss. The majority of the front page was filled with information on the Golden Trio; _on Harry BLOODY Potter!_

 _I cannot believe this is happening! He escaped…_ Wendy was so caught up in the revelation that she didn't hear the person approach her from behind.

"Miss Nottingham!" A scream of fright tore from her lips, then before she could register what was happening, she was on the floor.

 _Huh?_

A few more befuddled blinks, then things slowly fell into place.

Her body felt freer so she stretched out her newfound posture. An animalistic purr rumbled through her sharp teeth, and her pawed feet tapped against the cold floor; claws scratching the surface. She exhaled sharply, causing her small ears to twitch as they focused on their new surroundings.

Her magic still wasn't prominent in her body, but she felt a whole lot better than she did before. _I feel relaxed. I feel at one with myself again. I feel-_

Suddenly, the situation dawned on her. _I JUST SHIFTED IN FRONT OF PROFESSOR SNAPE!_

She whirled around on her paws, tilting her large head up at him and fearfully looked at him through her green eyes.

 _Why the heck is he smiling for!? This isn't funny!_

He crouched down to her level, placing his book next to him. "You've just got yourself two more weeks of detention, Miss Nottingham."

 _Oh, bugger._


	12. Chapter 12

AN/ Hello! thank you to **Professor Severus Tobias Snape** for reviewing! Enjoy :)

* * *

Chapter 12: Trapped.

Severus got to his feet and towered over the white tiger before him. He knew that she was still hiding things from him - that wasn't what had stunned him - her audacity to go snooping in his rooms wasn't a surprise either. However, the fact that she was an Animagi had shocked him the most.

 _This idiotic child was stupid to hide this from me. I bet she isn't registered to the Ministry either._

Her big green eyes narrowed up at him. "OK, change back now Miss Nottingham."

A puzzled look fell on her feline face; then she began to move around in worry. Her frantic movements resulted in her hitting her head against his desk. She let out a high-pitched yelp, burying her face into her paws.

"Nottingham, can you not turn back?" She looked over at him and shook her fuzzy head. "You dunderhead!" Severus resisted the urge to hit her with his book.

An exasperated sigh came from his lips, and then his eyes landed on the newspaper. _I guess Nottingham now knows Rufus escaped..._ His fingers curled into fists that soon disappeared after he gained his composure.

"Nobody else can see you like this," He said. "You'll have to stay here."

 _Her staying here's a bad idea; this incompetent girl is causing me too much hassle._ Severus had dealt with the bully who'd made Wendy cry, and he was trying his best to track down Rufus, but he was proving difficult to find.

 _Nottingham mentioned that she thought he was trying to take down her wards, but he shouldn't be able to get close enough to Hogwarts to do so. He must be doing it through the mark somehow;_ it was another thing added to his long list of tasks.

He watched her prowl around him in circles. "Knock it off!" Severus' snarl brought him comfort when she stopped moving. "Go sit by the fire," The girl did as she was told to do, yet there was a slight sense of sass in her strut. _Sass?_ He shuddered at the thought.

Severus sat behind his desk and glared at the mound of essays he needed to mark. It was a tedious task, which he quickly delved into unenthusiastically. His glasses found their way onto his hooked nose, and his red ink began to cover the poorly wrote paragraphs.

 **Thud. Thud. Thud.**

His hand tightened around the quill. The tiger's tail was thumping against the rug in front of the fire; the happy look on Wendy's face did nothing to contain his snarl. "Stop!" A feline whine erupted from her throat, and she shot up in a defensive stance. "If you're to remain in my quarters until you change back, you will find it in your best interest to not be like your usual, annoying self. Do you understand?"

She whipped her head away from him, which he saw as apparent defiance of his instructions. "Ten points from Ravenclaw for your rudeness, Miss Nottingham," That earned him a deep rumble from her. "Betty!"

A pop filled the room, and the house-elf appeared. Severus watched her eyes land on the white tiger; her face lit up with joy, and she raced over to hug the animal.

"Oh, Miss! It's so good to see you like this again! Betty is so happy!" Wendy responded by tucking the frail elf under her chin.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your little reunion," His voice dripped with sarcasm. "But, I need answers. How long has Miss Nottingham been able to do this?"

The house-elf looked down at her mistress, then awkwardly fiddled with the hem of her rags. "I cannot tell you, sir."

"And why not?" He retorted, getting to his feet. "What harm would be done if you told me how long?"

"Miss doesn't want you to know about who she is-" Wendy growled loudly frightening the elf; she quickly responded by reassuringly nudging her. "Miss! I didn't mean to say anything! Oh, I did a terrible thing!" She began to bang her head against the wall, but the tiger pushed her away gently with her head.

 _Who she is?_

"I'm aware of who her father is," He said. "Now, what else don't I know?"

The elf regarded him with wide eyes, then frantically looked down at her mistress. "Betty is trying her best for you mistress. Elves can't lie w-well! Master, please forgive Miss Wendy!"

"Forgive her..." He crossed his arms over his chest. "What could she have possibly done to me that should warrant my forgiveness?"

The tiger snarled again and nudged the house-elf a bit more forcefully; _she wants her to shut up._

"Since Miss Nottingham is unable to give me an answer, I'll seek honesty from you. Do not fret about going against your mistress, what you will tell me is nothing that she wouldn't have said to me further down the line. I urge you to speak with confidence," He sat down on the edge of his desk and returned Wendy's harsh gaze.

"Miss he can help you," She whispered down, patting her between the eyes, but she shook her head against her touch. "I'm sorry Mr Snape...Betty cannot go against her mistress."

He growled. _What a waste of my time._ "Leave!" The house-elf reluctantly left with a pop, then Severus walked over to the sofa and sat down.

"Miss Nottingham, can you not change back or are you not willing to out of fear because I caught you snooping in my office?" Her lean body stilled, and he watched various emotions appear in her eyes; _mostly fear._ "I thought it would be the latter. Change back, Miss Nottingham. Staying in this state will only prolong your frazzled magic."

An uneasy silence settled, then she began to shift back to normal. Severus watched the process to see if she was well after doing something that could easily do her more harm than good.

Suddenly, his breathing hitched in the back of his throat and his fingers curled around the arm of the sofa.

Wendy seemed oblivious to what was wrong while she stood there in all her naked glory. She rubbed at her tired eyes and a yawned tumbled from her lips, unbeknownst to the fact that she'd just given her Professor a very aching erection.

He could see the raised scars on her body; most of them were on her back, but a few rested on her flat stomach. There was another that ran a course from her plump breasts down to the side of her ribcage - which was unhealthily showing through her pale skin.

Her blonde hair broke free from its place on top of her head and fluttered down in messy knots down her back; it stopped just above her firm arse. He never realised her hair had been so long before as she never wore it down.

"Miss Nottingham," He seethed through gritted teeth, and his chest felt tight, along with another part of his body.

"Yes, sir?" She looked at him with a puzzled expression on her face. "It's cold down here-BUGGER!" She screeched realising the state she was in, and he grabbed the blanket from the back of the sofa - he should've done that straight away - and threw it at her exposed body.

She frantically pulled it against the nakedness of her body; which had flushed a pink shade. Severus watched her panic, but she soon managed to gain some composure to summon herself some clothes from the Domain.

Severus shot to his feet, narrowing his heated eyes at her. "You'll resume your detention on Monday evening," He managed to force the words out in a stable manner. "Stay out of my sight for the rest of the weekend."

She nodded. "I-I u-understand, sir."

With that, he stormed into his bedroom slamming the door shut behind him.

…

This time it was Wendy's turn to slam her head against a solid wall repeatedly. She managed to make it back down to the Domain, _clothed._ Betty was fussing over her as usual, spouting her apologises, but Wendy couldn't focus on her.

"Buggering hell!" She slid down the wall. "Betty it's fine. I'm not angry with you!"

"Miss, can I get you something to eat?"

"I don't think I can keep anything down at the moment," She disappeared back into the kitchen, leaving Wendy to glance around the dimly lit corridor. "That didn't just happen!" She thrust her fingers into her hair, shaking her head frantically.

 _He saw me naked. He saw my disgusting body._

Wendy didn't get much sleep that night even with the help of the dreamless sleep potion Snape had given her. She was embarrassed about the whole thing; humiliated that her Professor had seen her in bright lighting, seen every scar on her body, looked at her malnourished frame. _I bet the sight of me revolted him_.

She sat up on the sofa and wandered over to her desk. It took a few hours to complete her Charms essay, finally; then she moved onto her other pieces of homework. She wished to stay down in the Domain for the rest of the weekend; _for the rest of my life,_ but she had to go in search of Callum so he could give her the outfit he'd picked out.

Everything before her soon fell into organised piles; unlike the thoughts in her mind, her workspace was now clean. _Right, I should go and find Callum._ Wendy had already missed breakfast, and no potions found their way to her from Professor Snape. She hadn't been expecting him to send her anything.

 _I'm never going to be able to look at him without blushing._ Before Wendy had realised she was standing naked in front of him, there was an odd look in his eyes. It was primal, similar to when he stalked a student down like prey; yet, the look contained heat that could melt the core of its victim. She shuddered at the thought.

 _The last thing I should be thinking about is his eyes on my body...well, he was looking at you for longer than necessary,_ an inner voice spoke up. Wendy got to her feet and straightened out her shoulders. _No more thinking about it, Wendy._

She made her way out of the Domain with a book under her arm that was called _'The Essence of Charms'._ She was going to head down to see Hagrid after she found Callum, then read to Osher around the back of the hut.

She made her way through the kitchen, quickly avoiding Betty before she could squeal at her for not eating. The corridors contained a few students returning from breakfast, and none of them paid her any attention. _Good._

A few minutes later, she arrived outside the Great Hall to find Callum leaning against the wall nonchalantly. He had a box bundled underneath his arm and a package wrapped with a bow. His face lit up at the sight of her, and she bit down on her bottom lip, making her way over to him.

"Hi," She whispered sheepishly, and he stepped closer to her.

"These are for you," She took the items from him, then smiled down at them.

"Thank you," She glanced back up at him. "I appreciate it."

"We're going to have a blast at the party, then afterwards we can go drinking with some of the other seventh years near the Quidditch grounds," He explained faltering her smile.

"O-Oh," She stammered. "I won't be drinking."

He narrowed his eyes at her, _where the heck did his friendly face go?_ "Why not? Let loose for once in your life."

"And you know what I do with my life?" She retorted, and his welcoming smile returned to his face.

"I'm sorry," He placed his hand on her shoulder, and she glared at it. She felt an uneasy feeling spread out beneath his touch. "My friends are excited to meet you."

"You've told them about me?" Curiosity rang throughout her tone. _Why would he tell them about me?_

"Of course. I get to turn up to the Ball with a beautiful woman on my arm! I've told them so much about you," She felt his eyes do a once over of her body.

Professor Snape's fiery eyes popped up in her mind; she shook her head. _Don't think about it_.

"That's very sweet of you," Yet the words tasted bitter on her tongue. "I have to go."

"See you in Potions!" He waved her off, and she rushed away from him.

"Wendy!" She managed to avoid flooring Violet in her haste away from him. "Where are you off to in such a hurry?"

"I'm going to visit Hagrid," She said.

"Oh," Her eyes fell to the floor. "I was about to come and find you to see if you wanted to go to the library together?"

"How about I meet you there in two hours?" She offered, and watch in delight as Violet's face lit up.

"O-OK," She touched her arm then ran off in a flurry of robes.

 _I like her._

The rest of the day passed by without any embarrassing moments. She didn't cross paths with Snape - _I'm ecstatic about that_ \- and was even more delighted that he wasn't in the Great Hall for dinner. However, she was starting to feel the after effects of not taking the potions for her frazzled magic.

Dinner hadn't fueled her appetite, and she spent most of her time pushing the food around the plate. _I'm hungry, yet when I put food in my mouth, I want to vomit_. Soon everyone moved to leave the Great Hall, so she followed behind them.

Violet ran over to say goodnight and Callum winked at her when he passed by, _how unsettling._

 **DING DONG.**

Wendy jumped slightly, then casually brushed it off with a scratch behind her ear. _What is Betty doing now?_ She moved along with the crowd that was heading in the direction of the kitchen, then subtly slipped away inside. She scanned the few house-elves inside, and a few of them turned to look at her.

All of a sudden, a loud screech sliced through her eardrums, eliciting a shrill scream from her lips. Wendy's hands flew to her ears. The house-elves rushed over to aid her when the noise crippled her to her knees.

She managed to look at the door which led down to the Domain. _That sound only meant one thing; a creature had escaped from a book, and Betty's trapped down there._


End file.
